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63 


THE  CHRIST 
THE    SON    OF    GOD 

Volume  II. 


NfljH  obstat. 

A.    FIVEZ,    S.T.L. 

Censor  Deputatus. 

Imprimatur : 

THOMAS  S.   PRESTON,  V.G 

Neo  Eboraci,  die  27,  Junii,  1890. 


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LONGMAN  I  .  3REEN  ft  CO. 


THE   CHRIST 

THE     SON     OF     GOD 


A  LIFE  OF  OUR  LORD  AND  SAVIOUR 
JESUS  CHRIST 


y 


By  THE   ABBE   CONSTANT  FOUARD 

2Evanslateo  from  tfje  JFiftlj  lEottion  tottl)  tj)c  "Sutfjov's  sanction 
By  GEORGE   F.   X.   GRIFFITH 

SSEttfj  an  EntrolJttctt0n 
By    CARDINAL    MANNING 

Volume  II. 


LONGMANS,   GREEN,   AND   CO. 

91  and  93  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York 

london  and  bombay 

I905 
All  rights  reserved 


Copyright,  1890, 
By  Gi.orge  F.  X   Griffith. 


THIRTEENTH   ISSUE. 


fHm'bcrsttg  ^rrss : 
John  Wilson  and  Son,  Cambridge,  Mass.,  U.S. A 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 

VOLUME  II. 


HBoofc  jfiftt). 

THIRD   YEAR   OF   THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

CHAPTER  I. 

THE   SOJOURN   OP   JESUS    IN    TYRE    AND    THE    DECAPOLIS. 

I.  The  Pharisaic  Ablutions.  Page 

The  disciples  omit  the  washing  of  hands  before  the  meal.  — The 
Pharisees'  superstitious  as  to  Ablutions.  —  Human  traditions  re- 
spected, God's  commandments  despised.  —  What  soils  a  man 
rises  from  his  heart 3 

II.  The  Chanaanitish  Woman. 

Jesus  passes  from  Galilee  into  the  land  lying  about  Tyre.  —  Heals 
the  Chanaanean's  daughter. — Jesus  returns  by  way  of  Sidon  to 
the  Sea  of  Galilee 8 

III.  The  Second  Multiplication  of  the  Loaves. 

Jesus  in  the  Decapolis.  —  Heals  a  deaf  mute.  —  Many  sick  folk 
cured.  —  Jesus  feeds  four  thousand  men  with  seven  loaves  and  a 
few  fishes 12 


vi  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE    CONFESSION   OF   PETER. 

Page 
Jesus  at  Dalmanutha.  —  Prodigies  demanded  and  refused.  —  Warn- 
ing as  to  the  leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees.  —  Cure  of  a 
blind  man  near  Bethsaida-Julias.  — Jesus  at  Csesarea-Philippi.  — 
Confession  and  Primacy  of  Peter.  —  The  Power  of  the  Keys.  — 
The  Passion  first  foretold.  —  Peter  rebuked.  —  To  Lear  one's  cross 
and  follow  Jesus 16 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE    TRANSFIGURATION. 

I.  Jesus  on  Mount  Tabor. 

Tabor.  —  Moses  and  Elias  appear  with  the  transfigured  Jesus.  —  The 
new  coming  of  Elias.  —  A  demonished  child  healed.  —  Second 
time  the  Passion  is  foretold    .     .     . 27 

II.  The  Return  to  Capharnaum. 

Jesus  pays  the  tribute.  —  The  Apostles'  ambition  restrained.  —  Woe 
to  those  who  scandalize  the  little  ones.  — The  worm  and  the  ever- 
burning flame.  —  Forgiving  one's  brother.  —  Parable  of  the  king 
making  a  reckoning  with  his  servants.  — Brotherly  correction      .       33 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE    FEAST   OF   THE   TABERNACLES. 

I.  Jesus  goes  up  privately  to  Jerusalem. 

Ceremonies  at  the  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles.  —  Incredulity  of  Jesus' 
brethren.  —  Blind  zeal  of  James  and  John. —Three  Disciples 
called  by  the  Lord .       41 

II.  Jesus  in  the  Temple. 

Jesus  teaches  in  the  porches.  —  His  wisdom  causes  wonderment.  — 
Jesus  justifies  himself  for  having  healed  a  man  on  the  Sabbath. 
—  The  waters  of  Siloe.  —  The  last  day  of  the  Feast.  —  The  San- 
hedrin's  guards  dare  not  arrest  Jesus.  —  Nicodemns  defends  Him 
before  the  Council 46 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS.  vil 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE    FEAST    OF    THE    TABERNACLES   (continued). 

I.  The  Adulteress.  Page 

Jesus  pardons  an  adulteress.  —  Authenticity  of  the  Gospel  Record.  — 
Jesus  the  Light  of  the  World.  —  He  instructs  the  Jews  con- 
cerning His  Union  with  the  Father.  —  He  rebukes  them  for 
remaining  slaves  of  the  Devil.  —  The  Jews  wish  to  stone  the 
Saviour 55 

II.  The  Man  Born  Blind. 

Jesus  restores  the  sight  of  a  man  born  blind.  —  The  Pharisees  expel 
the  latter  from  the  Synagogue.  —  The  Parable  of  the  Good  Shep- 
herd    * 63 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    SEVENTY-TWO    DISCIPLES. 

Instructions  given  to  the  Seventy-two  disciples.  —  Woe  to  Ca- 
pharnaum  and  the  lake  cities !  —  The  disciples  return  full 
of  joy.  —  God  reveals  Himself  to  the  lowly.  —  The  Saviour's 
yoke.  —  Parahle  of  the  Good  Samaritan.  —  Martha  and 
Mary 72 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE    PHARISEES    OF    PEREA. 

I.    The  Lord's  Prayer.  —The  Two  Blind  Men.  —The  Dumb 
Devil.  —  The  Sign  from  on  High. 

Jesus  teaches  His  disciples  to  pray.  —  Second  form  of  the  Lord's 
Prayer.  —  Perseverance  in  prayer.  —  Cure  of  two  blind  men.  — 
The  dumb  devil.  —  Jesus'  miracles  attributed  to  Beelzebub  by 
the  Pharisees. — The  demon's  return  worse  than  his  first  en- 
trance. —  The  Mother  of  Jesus  proclaimed  blessed.  — The  Sign 
of  Jonas 81 


viii  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

II.    Jesus  ami  the  Phajusees.  page 

TIk'  Pharisee's  banquet.  —  Jesus  condemns  the  hypocrisy  of  Scribes 
and  Pharisees.  Warning  against  their  Leaven.  ■  -  Jesus  strength- 
ens His  disciples  to  meet  persecutions.  —  Refuses  to  be  judge 
between  two  brothers.       I  arable  of  the  rich  man  who  ami 

great  wealth.  Freedom  from  anxiety  as  to  the  needs  of  life.  — 
To  watch  with  one's  loins  girded  —  Fire  broughl  from  Heaven. 
—  Time  of  the  Messiah's  coming  unknown.  —  Reconciliation  with 
our  enemies 89 


CHAPTER   YIII. 

THE   ANNIVERSARY    OF   THE   DEDICATION. 

Galileans  slain  in  the  Temple.  —  Necessity  of  repentance.  —  Parable 
of  the  barren  fig-tree.  — Healing  of  a  woman  with  a  Spirit  of 
infirmity.  —  Scanty  number  of  the  Elect.  —  The  pretended  right- 
eous rejected.  —  Herod's  threat.  —  The  ruin  of  Jerusalem  lore- 
told. —  Feast  of  the  Dedication. — Jesus  returns  over  beyond 
Jordan.  96 

CHAPTER  IX. 

JESUS'    LAST    SOJOURN    IN    PEREA. 

I.  The  Man  with  Dropsy,  and  the  Second  Banquet  with 

the  Pharisees. 

A  man  with  dropsy  healed  on  the  Sabbath.  — To  ehoose  the  lower 
place.  —  Parable  of  the  guests  who  excused  themselves  from 
attending  the  banquet.  —  To  renounce  all  things  and  follow 
Jesus 105 

II.  The  Parables  upon  Divine  Mercy. 

The  wandering  sheep  and  the  lost  drachma.  —  Parable  of  the  prodi- 
gal son HO 

III.  The  Unfaithful  Steward.  —  The  Wicked  Rich  Man. 

Avarice  of  the  Pharisees.  —  Parable  of  the  unfaithful  steward.  — The 
teaching  of  Jesus  concerning  wealth.— The  Pharisees'  hypocrisy. 
—  Parable  of  the  wicked  rich  man. — Forgiveness  of  injuries. — 
The  power  of  Faith. —  Looking  upon  ourselves  as  unprofitable 
servants 115 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS.  ix 

CHAPTER  X. 

THE   RAISING   OF    LAZARUS. 

Page 
Death  of  Lazarus.  —Jesus  raises  him  to  life.  —The  Sanhedrin-factiou 
resolve  to  destroy  Jesus.  —  Caiphas'  prophecy.  —  Jesus  withdraws 
to  Ephrem 121 

CHAPTER  XL 

JESUS'    LAST   JOURNEY   TO   JERUSALEM. 

I.  The  Ten  Lepers. — The  Coming  of  the  Son  of  Man. — 

The   Judge   and    the   Widow.  —  The   Pharisee  and 
the  Publican. 

Jesus  leaves  Ephrem.  —  Cure  of  ten  lepers.  —  The  coming  of 
Jesus,  invisible  to  fleshly  eyes,  swift  as  the  lightning. — Where 
the  body  is,  there  shall  the  eagles  be  gathered  together.  —  The 
procrastinating  judge  and  the  widow.  —  The  Pharisee  and  the 
publican 131 

II.  Divorce.  —  Jesus  with   the    Children.  —  The    Rich 

Young  Man.  —  The  Workmen  in  the  Vineyard. 

Teaching  of  the  Jewish  Schools  touching  Divorce.  —  Jesus  declares 
Marriage  indissoluble.  —  Virginity.  - —  Jesus  blesses  the  little 
children.  —  The  rich  young  man.  —  The  dangers  of  wealth.  — 
The  hundredfold  promise  to  those  who  leave  all  for  Jesus.  — 
Parable  of  the  workmen  hired  for  the  vineyard 133 


CHAPTER    XII. 

JERICHO    AND    BETHANY. 

Third  prediction  of  the  Passion.  —  Request  of  the  mother  of  Zebedee's 
children. — Jesus  reproves  their  ambition.  —  The  Apostles  for- 
bidden to  domineer.  —  Jesus  heals  the  blind  men  of  Jericho.  — 
Zacheus  entertains  the  Saviour  in  his  house.  —  Parable  of  the 
mina  and  the  rebellious  subjects.  —  The  banquet  at  Bethany.  — 
Mary  anoints  the  Lord.  —  Judas  murmurs  at  her  extravagance    .     148 


X  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 

215oofe  £>ijrt^ 

HOLY    WEEK. 
(MUTER  I. 

THE    TRIUMPH    OF    JESUS. 

I.  The  Entry  of  Jesus  into  Jerusalem.  Page 

The  Jews  on  the  keen  lookout  for  Jesus.  —  Bethphage.  —  The  con- 
course  accompanying  the  Lord. — Jesus  weeps  over  Jerusalem. — 
Acclamations  of  tin-  people. — .Jesus  in  the  Temple.  —  He  with- 
draws in  the  direction  of  Bethany 163 

II.  Holt  Monday. 

The  barren  fig-tree  cursed  by  the  Lord.  —  The  hucksters  driven  from 
tin'  Temple.  —  Children  chant  the  praise  of  Jesus. — Certain 
Greeks  ask  for  an  interview  with  the  Saviour. — Jesus  foretells 
His  death  and  the  glory  which  shall  ensue.  —  He  rebukes  the 
Jews  for  their  unbelief 171 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE    LAST    DAY    IN    THE    MINISTRY   OF   JESUS. 

I.  Jesus  and  the  Members  of  the  Sanhedrin. — Parables 

of  the  Vine-Dressers  and  the  Wedding-Festival. 

The  fig-tree  blasted.  —  Power  of  faith  and  of  prayer.  —  The  Sanhe- 
drin-members  questioned  as  to  John's  baptism.  — Parable  of  the 
two  disobedient  sons.  —  Parable  of  the  husbandmen.  — The  wed- 
ding-festival       1/9 

II.  Cesar's  Denahun. 

The  Herodians  and  the  Tharisees  tempt  Jesus  concerning  the  tribute 

paid  to  Caesar 187 

III.  Jesus  and  the  Sadducees.  — The  Great  Commandment. 

—  The  Christ  the  Son  of  David. 

The  Sadducee's  question  about  the  woman  who  had  seven  husbands. 
—  Which  is  the  first  of  the  Commandments  ?  — David  calls  the 
Messiah  his  Lord 190 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS.  xi 

IV.     Denunciation  of  the  Pharisees.  Page 

The  Pharisees  seated  in  the  chair  of  Moses.  —  Scribes  ami  Pharisees 
are  indulgent  to  themselves,  harsh  and  severe  to  others ;  haughty 
and  hypocritical  ;  blind  guides  ;  whited  sepulchres  ;  persecutors 
of  the  Prophets.  —  Their  condemnation  pronounced.  —  Jesus 
again  weeps  over  Jerusalem 19d 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE    LAST    PROPHECIES. 

A  widow  gives  her  little  all.  —  Jesus  foretells  the  destruction  of  the 
Temple.  —  The  fall  of  Jerusalem  and  the  end  of  the  world  pre- 
dicted together.  —  Signs  which  shall  forerun  these  two  events : 
the  spirit  of  seduction  general,  wars,  famines,  earthquakes,  per- 
secutions, the  Abomination  of  Desolation  in  the  Temple. — The 
end  of  the  world.  —  To  watch  always.  —  The  hireling  surprised  in 
wrong-doing.  —  Parable  of  the  servants.  —  The  wise  and  the  fool- 
ish virgins.  —  The  last  Judgment.  — Judas  sells  the  Saviour  .     .     200 


CHAPTER  IV. 
THE   LAST   SUPPER. 

I.  Judaic  Ritual  of  the  Passover. 

The  Paschal  Lamb.  —  Ablutions  of  the  guests.  —  Ceremonies  and 

hymns  chanted  during  the  Feast.  — The  Chalice  of  Benediction        214 

II.  The  Eeast  of  the  Passover. 

The  Supper- Room  prepared.  —The  first  cup  blessed.  — The  washing 
'of  the  feet.  —  Peter's  resistance.  —  To  be  pure  of  the  least  stains. 

—  Judas'  treachery  denounced 219 

III.  The  Institution  of  the  Eucharist. 

Consecration  of  the  Azyme-bread.  —  Communion  of  the  Apostles.  — 

Consecration  of  the  Cup.  — The  traitor  again  denounced Judas 

departs  from  the  Supper-Room 227 

IV.  Peter's  Eall  Foretold. 

Glorification  of  Jesus.  — Jesus  announces  that  Peter  will  deny  Him. 

—  Rivalry  among  the  Apostles.  — Promise  of  a  Kingdom  of  Cod. 

—  Jesus  prays  for  Peter.  —  The  two  swords 232 


Xii  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE   LAST    DISCOURSES   OF   JESUS. 

I.  The  DiSCOl  else  aftek  the  Last  SUPPEE.  Page 

<  lharacter  of  the  discourses  reported  by  S.  John.  — Trust  in  Jesus.  — 
Jesus  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and  the  Life.  — The  Father  is  in  the 
Son  and  the  Son  is  in  the  Father.  —  Promise  of  the  Comforter.  — 
Ji  jus  Leaves  Hi-  peace  with  the  Apostles.  —  He  departs  from  the 
Supper-Room 237 

II.  Tub  Talk  along  the  Way  to  Getiisejiani. 

Jesus  is  the  Vine,  the  faithful  its  branches.  — Commandment  of  mu- 
tual love. — The  Apostles  to  be  persecuted.  —  Sadness  over  the 
absence  of  Jesus.  —  Mission  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  ■  Sadness  changed 
into  joy.  —  Prayer  in  the  Name  of  Jesus.  -  The  flight  of  the 
Apostles  and  Peter's  denial  foretold 243 

III.  The  Prayer  of  Jesus. 

Kedron.  —  Jesus  asks  the  Father  to  glorify  Him.  —  He  prays  for  His 

Apostles  and  the  Universal  Church 252 

316ook  £>cfcnut)» 

THE  PASSION  AND  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 
CHAPTER  I. 

JESUS    IN    THE    GARDEN   OF    OLIVES. 

Gethsemani.  —  Sadness  of  Jesus.  —The  three  witnesses  of  His  agony. 
—  The  dip  of  Bitterness. —The  bloody  sweat.  —  Appearance  of 
an  Angel.  —  The  Apostles'  slumber.  —  Arrival  of  Judas.  —  The 
guards  thrown  to  the  ground.  —  Arrest  of  Jesus.  —  Peter  and 
Malchus Flight  of  the  Apostles 261 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE   TRIAL   OF    JESUS. 

I.     Jesus  before  Annas. 

The  palace  of  the  High-Priest.  —  Annas  cross-questions  Jesus      .     .     271 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS.  xiii 

II.     Jesus  before  CaIpiias  and  the  Sanhedrin.  Page 

The  Sanhedrin.  —  A  night  session.  —  The  false  witnesses.  —  Caiphas 
questions  the  Saviour.  —  Jesus  declared  a  blasphemer,  and  mal- 
treated      275 


III.  Peter's  Denial. 

John  conducts  Peter  into  the  palace.  —  The  threefold  denial.  —  The 

Apostle's  repentance 280 

IV.  The  Second  Sitting  of  the  Sanhedrin. 

Jesus  insulted  and  beaten  by  His  jailers.  —  The  Sanhedrin's  quan- 
dary, how  to  execute  their  sentence  of  death  upon  Jesus.  — At 
dawn  Jesus  summoned  anew  before  His  judges 285 

V.  Death  of  Judas. 

Judas  goes  up  to  the  Temple.  —  He  casts  down  the  price  of  his 
treason  upon  the  threshold  of  The  Holy.  —  His  despairing 
death ....................     288 


CHAPTER  III. 

JESUS  AT  THE  PRETORIUM  AND  BEFORE  HEROD. 

Antonia.  — Jesus  brought  before  Pilate.  —  Discussion  between  Pilate 
and  the  Sanhedrin  party.  — Jesus  before  Herod.  —  Herod  and  his 
court.  —  Jesus,  maltreated  and  clad  in  a  white  robe,  is  sent  back 
to  Pilate  ;  Jesus  and  Barrabas.  —  The  dream  of  Pilate's  wife. 
—  Barrabas  preferred  before  Jesus.  —  Pilate  washes  his  hands  be- 
fore the  people .     294 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   CONDEMNATION   OF   JESUS. 

The  scourging.  —  The  crowning  with  thorns.  —  Ecce  Homo.  —  Pilate's 
final  attempts  at  resistance.  —  Jesus  condemned  to  be  crucified.  — 
Pilate's  end  .....  -     .     .     ,     .     .     .     „     0     „     „     o     309 


\iv  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

the  crucifixion. 

Paqb 

The  Via  Dolorosa.  —  The  executioners  of  Jesus. — The  Cross. — 
Simon  the  Cyrenean.  —  The  women  of  Jerusalem  weep  over  Jesus. 
—  The  drink  offered  to  the  Saviour.  —  Jesus  crucified  between 
two  thieves.  —  The  superscription  of  the  Cross 316 

CHAPTER  VI. 

DEATH    OF    JESUS. 

Jesus  forgives  His  executioners.  —  His  garments  divided. — Jesus 
upon  the  Cross.  —  The  good  thief.  —  Mary  and  John  at  the  foot 
of  the  Cross.  —  The  Darkness.  —  Abandonment  of  Jesus  upon  the 
Cross.  —  His  cry  of  anguish  turned  to  derision.  —  The  Thirst. — 
His  last  words.  —  His  death 328 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   TOMB    OF   JESUS. 

The  prodigies  following  the  death  of  Jesus.  — The  Centurion's  con- 
fession. —  The  disciples  facing  the  Cross.  —  The  limbs  of  the 
thieves  broken.  —  The  Saviour's  side  opened.  — Joseph  of  Arima- 
thea  and  Nicodemus  bury  the  Saviour. — The  holy  women.  — 
The  tomb  sealed  up 341 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE   RESURRECTION. 

I.    Ttie  First  Apparitions. 

The  two  Marys  and  Salome.  —  Appearance  of  the  Angel.  — Peter  and 
John  run  to  the  Sepulchre.  — Tesus  appears  to  the  Magdalene. — 
The  holy  women  at  the  tomb. — Jesus  appears  to  them.  —  Un- 
belief of  the  Apostles.  —  The  guards  bribed  by  the  Sanhedrin- 
peoplc 350 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS.  XV 

Paok 
II.     The  Disciples  at  Emmaus.  —  Jesus  in  the  Supper- Room. 

Appearance  of  Jesus  to  the  two  disciples  walking  Emmaiisward. — 
He  makes  Himself  known  in  the  breaking  of  bread.  —  Jesus 
appears  to  the  eleven  in  the  Supper-Room.  —  Thomas,  who  is 
absent,  refuses  to  believe.  — Jesus  appears  the  .second  time  to 
His  Apostles 359 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE    FORTY    DAYS. 

I.  Jesus  Appearing  to  His  Disciples  in  Galilee. 

Jesus  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Genesareth.  —  The  miraculous  draught 
of  fishes. —  Peter,  Shepherd  of  the  sheep  and  of  the  lambs.  —  His 
martyrdom  and  John's  death  foretold. — Appearance  of  Jesus  upon 
the  mountain  in  Galilee.  — The  Apostles'  Mission.  —  Appearance 
of  the  Lord  to  James 366 

II.  The  Ascension. 

The  Apostles  return  to  Jerusalem.  —  Jesus  gathers  them  together 
once  more  in  the  Supper-Room.  —  He  goes  up  into  Heaven  in 
their  sight 375 


IX.     Harmony  of  the  Gospel  narratives  in  the  last  year 

of  the  Saviour's  life 383 

X.    The  Chronology  of  the  Passion 386 

XL    Harmony  of  the  four  Gospels  in  the  Narratives  of 

the  Resurrection 395 

CONCORDANCE   OF  THE   FOUR   GOSPELS    .....  .399 

INDEX      ...................  406 


Plan  of  Jerusalem  in  the  Time  of  our  Lord  .     .      Frontispiece 


BOOK    FIFTH. 


THIRD   YEAR 

OP    THE 

MINISTRY    OF    JESUS. 


VOL.    II.  —  1 


RATA    MAQSAION. 

i<r'.   iy'-i<r. 

"O  Se  *1t)(tov<;  .  .  .  r)pu)Ta  tous  fiaOyras  cu>toO  Ae'ywv  •  TtVa 
\4yov(TLv  ot  ai'dpwTTOi  eivcu  tov  Yiov  toC  avOpunrov ; 

ol  Se  UTrav  •  Ot  /xev  luydvvrjv  toi/  (3a7TTLcrTi]v,  oi  8e  .  .  •  era  Ta>j> 
ITpo0?^rojv. 

Aeyci  a^Tots  6   I^oms  •    Ypeis  Se  TtVa  yu.e  Aeyere  tu'ai  ; 

'A7TOKpt^£l5    8c    2</AuJI/    IIcVpO?    €17T£V  "     2u    ci    'O    XPI2T02    'O 

YI02  TOY  0EOY  toO  £wvtos. 


Simon  $ctct'£  Cejftimonp, 


-4?w£  t/esws  .  .  .  asked  His  disciples,  saying:  "  Who  do 
men  say  that  the  Son  of  man  is  ?  " 

And  they  said  :  "  Some,  John  the  Baptist ;  others,  .  .  .  one 
of  the  Prophets." 

Jesus  said  to  them :  "  But  lV7w  do  you  say  that  1  am  ?" 

And  Simon  Peter  answering  said :  "  Thou  art  THE 
CiriUST,  THE  SON  OF  THE  LIVING   GOD." 


SAINT  MATTHEW. 
xvi.  13-16. 


THE   CHRIST,  THE   SON   OF   GOD. 


Eoolt  Mtt\). 


THIRD   YEAR   OF   THE    MINISTRY   OF 
JESUS. 


CHAPTEE  I. 

THE  SOJOURN  OF  JESUS  IN  TYRE  AND  THE  DECAPOLIS. 

I.  The  Pharisaic  Ablutions. 

Matt.  xv.  1-20 ;  Mark  vii.  1-23. 

Only  one  year  lies  between  Jesus  and  death ;  its  open- 
ing days  are  dark  and  threatening.  Judea,  the  foremost 
object  of  His  care,  now  treats  Him  as  if  He  were  its  bitter- 
est foe.  "  He  would  no  longer  walk  there,  because  the  Jews 
sought  to  kill  him."  1  Jerusalem  was  closed  against  Him  ; 
they  were  celebrating  the  Pasch  there  now,  yet  He  could 
not  show  Himself  among  His  people.  Galilee,  in  its  turn, 
had  withdrawn  from  Him,  and  Capharnaum  had  broken  out 
into  angry  murmurs  against  Him.  The  Lord  had  no  other 
alternative  except  to  wander  through  a  Pagan  territory, 
across  the  kingdom  of  Philip  and  into  the  lands  lying 

1  John  vii.  1. 


4  THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

beyond  the  Jordan.  Meanwhile  we  shall  see  Him  still 
pursued  from  town  to  town,  from  one  wilderness  to  another, 
even  to  the  day  when,  with  His  Mission  accomplished,  of 
His  own  will  He  saw  fit  to  deliver  Himself  into  the  hands 
of  His  executioners. 

However,  although  Capharnaum  had  lost  its  first  faith,  it 
never  conceived  any  such  violent  hatred  for  the  Master 
Who  had  so  recently  been  honored  and  beloved  by  them 
as  that  displayed  by  Jerusalem  toward  Him.  Jesus  still 
dwelt  there  in  safety  until  the  return  of  the  pilgrims  who 
had  gone  up  to  the  Temple ;  but  once  the  Paschal-time  was 
over,  He  could  see  that  new  numbers  of  spies  were  dogging 
His  footsteps.  These  were  "  some  of  the  Pharisees  and  cer- 
tain Scribes  who  had  come  down  from  the  Holy  City," 1  full 
of  the  discussions  to  which  they  had  been  listening  from 
their  famous  doctors,  and  thereby  nerved  with  greater  zeal 
than  ever  to  maintain  the  perfect  observance  of  their 
cherished  Ordinances. 

The  freedom  which  the  Lord  displayed  in  dealing  with 
their  Pharisaical  precepts  was,  as  we  have  said,  a  shocking 
and  scandalous  thing  to  those  sectaries.  Now  we  are 
well  aware  to  what  excesses,  in  the  matter  of  ablutions2 
particularly,  the  Jews  of  this  period,  and  notably  the  Phari- 
sees, carried  their  scrupulosity.  Saint  Mark  tells  us  how, 
before  each  meal,  they  were  wont  to  wash  their  hands  with 
the  greatest  care,  scrubbing  their  clenched  fists  one  against 
the  other,3  immersing  their  whole  bod}r  in  water  on  their 

1  Mark  vii.  1. 

2  The  Rabbinical  Ordinances  touching  these  purifications  fill  a  large  part 
of  the  six  Seder  of  the  Talmud  with  their  puerile  details  ;  this  section  was 
entitled  Tahardth  :  "  The  Purifications."  In  no  other  portion  of  that  vast 
compilation  is  the  absurdity  of  the  Pharisaic  prescriptions  manifested  more 
unmistakably. 

8  Mark  vii.  3.  Such  is  the  probable  meaning  of  the  reading  irvypLJ) 
given  in  a  majority  of  the  manuscripts  ;  the  Rabbinical  traditions  narrate 
that  the  Zealots  had  precisely  this  fashion  of  washing  their  hands  (Light- 
foot,  Horcc  Hebraicoe,  in  Mare.  vii.  3).  In  order  to  translate  this  term  as 
the  Vulgate  and  the  Syriac  version  have  it,  "  crehro  "  or  "  diligenter,"  the 
other  reading  from  the  Sinaitic  MS.  must  be  adopted,  in  which  ease  it  will 
read  TvvKvi..  Theophylactus  and  Euthymius  have  commented  upon  this 
differently  ;  they  understood  vLirrcffOcu  irvyfj.^  to  mean  "washing  the  anus 
up  to  the  elbows." 


THE  PHARISAIC  ABLUTIONS.  5 

return  from  any  public  places,1  forever  cleansing  their 
cups,  water-jars,2  brazen  pote,  and  the  wooden  parts  of  the 
couches  on  which  their  guests  reclined.  And  these  intermi- 
nable pains  were  not  mere  practices  which  one  was  free  to 
observe  or  not ;  but,  being  taught  as  the  Traditions  of  their 
ancient  Kabbis,  they  were  as  rigorously  enforced  as  any 
precepts  of  the  Law.  To  abide  in  the  faithful  practice  of 
all  these,  it  behoved  one  to  go  any  distance  for  the  neces- 
sary water,  and  the  Eabbi  Akiba  was  praised  for  incurring 
the  risk  of  dying  of  thirst  in  prison  rather  than  drink 
without  having  first  purified  his  hands.3  It  is  true  the 
Sadducees  ridiculed  this  slavery  to  trifles,  and  often  asked 
the  Pharisees  if  they  would  not  end  by  sprinkling  the  sun 
with  lustral  water;4  but  all  their  ridicule  could  not  rob  the 
Scribes  of  their  ascendency;  and,  in  the  people's  eyes,  to 
violate  one  of  their  Observances  still  continued  to  be  re- 
garded as  a  heinous  crime.5 

The  Apostles,  reared  from  childhood  in  reverence  for  the 
Doctors  of  the  Law,  now  trembled  before  them ;  conse- 
quently, they  were  vastly  disquieted  when  they  saw  some 
of  these  personages  approaching  the  Christ  with  words  of 
cold  disapproval.6 

"  Why  do  not  your  disciples  follow  the  Traditions  of  the 
Ancients  ?     Why  do  they  eat  with  unclean  hands  ? " 

1  'Air  dyopas,  or  in  other  words,  as  is  indicated  by  another  reading  found 
in  several  MSS.,  orav  ^Xdwaiv,  "when  they  returned  from  the  market- 
place." The  Greek  text,  it  is  true,  ma}'  be  translated  differently  :  "And 
they  eat  nothing  of  what  they  have  purchased  in  the  markets  until  they 
have  washed  it "  ( Arianus,  Epict.  iii.  19,  5).  However,  we  do  not  believe  that 
this  interpretation  should  be  adopted,  as  it  destroys  the  train  of  thought  ; 
for  there  could  be  nothing  more  natural  (and  consequently  less  Pharisaical) 
than  to  freshen  one's  food  witli  water  before  putting  it  on  the  table. 

2  Searuv.  "  Sextarius  "  is  one  of  the  numerous  Latin  names  for  which 
S.  Mark  gives  us  the  Greek  form. 

3  Buxtorf,  Synagoga  Jitdalca,  p.  236. 

4  It  was  for  having  purified  the  Seven-branched  Candlestick  that  the 
Pharisee's  drew  down  upon  themselves  this  ironical  squib  {Ghagigah, 
iii.  8). 

5  "Quicmique  panem  edit  absque  lotione  manuum,  proinde  facit  ac  si 
rem  haberet  cum  muliere  meretrice  "  (Tenchuma,  f.  93,  2).  "Si  quis 
manus  post  cibum  sumptum  non  lavat,  idem  est  ac  si  hominem  interhciat " 
{Sabbath,  f.  36). 

6  Mark  vii.  5. 


6  THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Jesus  would  not  allow  these  hypocrites  to  practise  upon 
the  simplicity  of  the  Apostles.  He  straightway  took  up 
the  defence  of  His  own,  and  withstood  them,  meeting 
reproof  with  reproof.1 

"  And  you,"  He  said,  "  why  do  you  transgress  the  Law  of 
God  in  order  to  follow  those  traditions  of  yours?  God  has 
said,  'Honor  thy  father  and  thy  mother;'2  and  yet  you 
say:  I!'  a  man  says  to  his  parents,  I  have  vowed  to  God 
that  which  I  might  have  bestowed  upon  you ;  the  Avoid 
'  Corbau '  once  uttered,  the  vow  is  irrevocable,3  and  you  no 
longer  permit  the  sou  to  do  anything  for  his  father  and 
mother.  Tims  you  set  the  Law  of  God  at  naught  by  your 
traditions.4  Hypocrites!  verily  it  was  of  you  that  Isaias 
prophesied  :  — 

"  With  their  lips  do  these  people  honor  Me, 

"  But  their  heart  is  far  from  Me. 

"In  vain  do  they  honor  Me,6 

"  Teaching  the  doctrines  and  the  precepts  of  men." 

It  was  the  first  time  that  Jesus  had  so  severely  scourged 
the  Pharisees,  openly  treating  them  as  hypocrites  and  lay- 
ing bare  the  inherent  weakness  of  their  doctrine.  Hitherto 
He  had  said  nothing  as  to  their  claim  that  they  were  justi- 
fied in  giving  the  same  force  to  the  teaching  of  their  Rabbis 
as  to  the  commands  of  God ;  until  now  He  had  never  tried 
to  dissuade  the  people  from  believing  that  these  observances 
also  came  from  Moses,  and  thus  formed  a  Second  Law.  But 
it  was  time  for  Him  to  tell  them  plainly  that  only  upon 
the  ruins  of  the  Commandments  could  the  Pharisees  suc- 
ceed in  establishing  their  Traditions.     And  this  Jesus  did 

1  Matt.  xv.  3,  4. 

2  Mark  vii.  11-13. 

3  The  word  corban  means  "a  gift,  a  thing  vowed  to  God."  In  the 
opinion  of  the  Scribes  it  sufficed  to  utter  it,  even  unintentionally,  merely 
saying  :  "This  is  a  Corban  ;  "  and  at  once  the  speaker  was  bound  by  an 
inviolable  vow  which  outweighed  every  other  duty. 

4  Matt.  xv.  7. 

5  Is.  xxix.  18.  Mdn/c  may  mean  "without  fruit;"  or,  as  the  Vulgate 
translates  it,  "without  cause,  without  reason."  Their  religion  is  vain, 
because  they  follow  not  the  practices  revealed  by  God,  but  prefer  rules  of 
an  altogether  human  origin. 


THE  PHARISAIC  ABLUTIONS.  7 

with  such  overwhelming  authority,  swaying  all  minds 
with  such  convincing  power,  that  His  enemies  retired  in 
confusion. 

But  the  astonished  crowds  were  also  for  withdrawing  in 
their  turn.     Jesus  called  them  back  to  Him.1 

"  Listen  to  Me,  all  of  you,"  He  said,  "  and  understand. 
There  is  nothing  from  without  a  man  which,  by  entering 
into  him,  can  defile  him ;  but  whatsoever  proceeds  from  a 
man,  that  it  is  which  renders  a  man  impure.  Whoso  hath 
ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear."  And  leaving  the  people  there 
He  reentered  His  dwelling. 

This  saying  of  the  Christ  was  at  once  reported  to  the 
Scribes.  It  touched  them  to  the  quick,  discrediting  as  it 
did  their  interminable  ablutions,  which  had  no  power  to 
cleanse  the  sin-stained  soul ;  leaving  the  people  to  infer  that 
even  those  Mosaic  purifications,  which  thus  far  Jesus  had 
treated  with  respect,  would  soon  have  to  give  place  to  His 
simple  Counsels  of  an  inward  purity  of  heart.  Deep  was 
their  indignation ;  indeed,  their  anger  was  so  threatening 
that  the  frightened  disciples  hastened  back  to  the  Lord.2 

"  Do  you  know,"  they  said  to  Him,  "  how  much  the 
Pharisees  were  scandalized  at  this  saying  ? " 

Jesus  met  their  anxiety  with  imperturbable  serenity,  and 
repeated  that  these  regulations,  invented  by  man  and  rep- 
robated by  God,  must  disappear. 

"  Every  plant,"  He  said,  "  which  My  Heavenly  Father 
has  not  planted  shall  be  rooted  up ;  if  a  blind  man  guide 
another,  both  of  them  shall  fall  into  the  same  pit." 

His  firmness  restored  peace  among  the  Apostles,  but 
their  slow  and  uncultured  minds  could  not  manage  to 
decipher  the  hidden  meaning  of  those  words  which  had  so 
shocked  and  offended  the  Scribes. 

"Lord,"  said  Peter,  in  the  others'  name,3  "explain  this 
Parable  to  us." 

Though  yielding  to  their  request,  the  Master  replied :  — 

"  What !  are  you  too,  then,  devoid  of  intelligence  ?  4  Do 
you  not  understand  that  there  is  nothing  from  without 

i  Mark  vii.  14.  2  Matt,  xv.  12-14. 

3  Matt.  xv.  15-20.  *  Mark  vii.  18. 


8     THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTR  Y  OF  JESUS. 

which,  by  entering  into  a  man,  can  render  him  unclean,, 
because  it  does  not  enter  into  his  heart?  For  it  is  from 
within,  and  from  the  heart,  that  there  arise  all  wicked 
thoughts, — adulteries,  fornications,  murders,  thefts,  avarice, 
malicious  deeds,  cheating,  lewd  thoughts,  a  covetous  eye, 
blasphemy,  pride,  folly.  These  are  things  which  defile  a 
man;  but  not  to  eat  with  unwashen  hands,  for  that  cannot 
defile  a  man." 

II.    The  Chanaanitish  Woman. 

Matt.  xv.  21-28 ;  Mark  vii.  24-30. 

Jesus  had  not  succeeded  in  discomfiting  the  Pharisees 
without  embittering  their  hearts  with  a  fiercer  dislike  for 
Him.  Very  soon  they  had  arrayed  such  a  formidable  host 
of  foes  against  the  Master  that  He  saw  it  would  be 
impossible  for  him  to  remain  longer  in  Galilee,  or  even  to 
return  thither,  except  at  rare  intervals.  Crossing  over  the 
frontiers  of  Zabulon  and  Nephthali,1  for  the  time  being  He 
sought  an  asylum  in  the  Pagan  provinces,  and  stayed  there 
during  almost  six  months,  devoting  all  His  care  and  at- 
tention to  the  Apostles,  thereby  finishing  the  instructions 
He  had  come  to  bestow ;  giving  them  to  know  more  of 
His  Church  and  tracing  out  before  their  eyes  its  plan 
divine. 

The  Evangelists  mention  but  a  few  of  the  incidents  of 
this  journey.  They  merely  state  that  upon  leaving  Galilee, 
shortly  after  the  Pasch  (April),  the  Saviour  passed  from 
Tyre  into  the  Decapolis,  made  a  brief  sojourn  on  the  shores 
of  Genesareth,  went  back  immediately  to  the  valley  of  the 
upper  Jordan,  and  did  not  return  to  Capharnaum  until 
about  the  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles  (the  last  of  September).2 
During  this  voluntary  exile  the  Master  for  the  most  part 

1  S.  Matthew's  words  (xv.  21),  deexwp^o'ei'  els  ra  fiipy)  Ttipov  t«xl  SiStDvos, 
do  not  merely  denote  that  Jesus  retired  into  those  parts  of  Galilee  horder- 
ing  upon  Tyre  and  Sidon,  hut  that  He  also  ahode  in  that  foreign  land.  In 
fart,  S.  Mark  states  distinctly  that  He  left  Tyre  and  passed  by  Sidon,  in 
order  to  return  to  the  Sea  of  Galilee  (Mark  vii.  31). 

2  Mark  vii.  2\,  31  ;  viii.  10,  27  ;  John  vii.  1,  2. 


THE   CHANAANITISH    WOMAN.  9 

sought  solitude,  probably  changing  His  place  of  abode  as 
soon  as  His  presence  in  any  region  came  to  be  remarked, 
for  He  had  not  been  sent  to  enlighten  the  Gentiles  in  His 
own  person ;  therefore,  faithful  to  the  terms  of  His  Mis- 
sion, He  endeavored  to  remain  unknown  in  these  wealthy 
countries.1 

However,  His  coming  could  not  continue  always  entirely 
unnoticed ;  for  now  a  long  while  the  renown  of  His  deeds 
had  exceeded  the  boundaries  of  Israel;  long  since,  out  of 
Tyre  and  Sidon,  people  had  journeyed  to  hear  His  words 
and  to  beg  the  cure  of  their  sick,  so  that  all  Syria  was  now 
well  aware  that  a  Prophet,  the  Son  of  David,  was  once 
again  conferring  a  heavenly  splendor  upon  the  land  of 
Juda.2 

Now  as  he  was  passing  along  a  road  not  far  from  either 
Tyre  or  Sarepta,3  a  woman  who  had  overheard  much  talk  con- 
cerning Him  hurried  out  of  the  house4  where  her  daughter 
lay  struggling  in  the  throes  of  a  furious  delirium. 

"  Have  mercy  upon  me,"  she  cried,  "  my  Lord,  Thou  Son 
of  David.  My  daughter  is  cruelly  tormented  by  the 
devil." 

The  Gospel  informs  us  more  at  length  as  regards  this 
poor  petitioner.5  A  Greek  by  language  and  manners,  she 
belonged  to  the  Phoenician  provinces  of  Syria,  and  was  a 
descendant  of  the  race  of  Canaan ;  hence,  it  was  a  disowned 

1  Jesus  always  seems  to  have  preferred  following  the  sea-shore  or  the 
banks  of  some  stream,  just  as  now  the  Leontes  and  the  Jordan.  When  in 
a  strange  land  they  had  to  procure  their  daily  food  somehow,  and  the 
Apostles  undoubtedly  supplied  their  wants  from  the  produce  of  their 
fishing. 

2  Mark  iii.  8  ;  Matt.  iv.  24. 

3  The  Homilies,  attributed  to  S.  Clement  (ii.  19  ;  iii.  73),  give  Justa  as 
the  name  of  the  Chanaanitish  woman,  and  her  daughter's  name  as  Bere- 
nice, while  certain  traditions  assert  that  Sarepta  was  her  native  place  ; 
but  it  seems  likely  that  the  miracle  took  place  near  Tyre,  for  S.  Mark 
(vii.  31)  adds,  immediately  upon  the  story  of  the  miracle,  that  Jesus 
quitted  the  vicinity  of  this  town  and  set  out  for  Sidon.  Now  Sarepta  is 
situated  between  these  two  cities ;  hence  He  could  not  have  reached  that 
point  in  His  journey  when  He  worked  this  miracle. 

4  'Airb  twv  optwv  (Matt.  xv.  22)  should  be  connected  with  Kavavaia  :  "a 
Chanaanean  of  these  parts."  'EtjeXdovaa,  employed  absolutely,  will  there- 
fore signify  "  coming  out  of  the  city,  from  the  house  she  dwelt  in." 

6  Mark  vii.  26 ;  Matt.  xv.  22. 


10         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

and  reprobate  blood  which  flowed  in  her  veins.  The  Lord 
answered  her  not  a  word. 

Without  heeding  this  silence  of  the  Christ,  the  woman 
set  out  to  follow  Him,  never  ceasing  to  implore  His  mercy. 
Jesus  entered  a  dwelling  in  order  to  remain  in  seclusion 
there,1  but  the  Chanaanean  begged  with  no  less  earnestness, 
and  did  but  redouble  her  supplications  when  the  door  was 
shut  and  she  was  left  outside  in  company  with  the  Apostles. 
Wearying  of  her  cries,  and  furthermore  fearing  lest  the 
knots  of  curious  spectators  now  collecting  around  her 
should  attract  attention  to  them,  and  so  betray  the  iden- 
tity which  the  Master  desired  to  conceal,  coming  in  to 
Him  they  said  : — ■ 

"  Send  her  away,  for  she  keeps  calling  after  us."  2 

At  no  time  had  Jesus  ever  dismissed  any  one  who  thus 
besought  His  aid  without  first  granting  their  prayer,  and 
the  Apostles  had  no  idea  but  that  in  this  instance  He  would 
act  as  usual;  yet,  as  it  happened,  He  only  vouchsafed  the 
reply :  — 

"I  am  not  sent  except  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  House 
of  Israel." 

Yet,  when  they  repeated  His  words  to  her,  the  Chanaan- 
ite  was  not  disheartened  one  whit  by  this  rebuff.  She 
determined  to  renew  the  strife  again  with  the  Lord  Him- 
self, trying  to  wrest  the  will  of  Heaven,  and  so  prove  herself 
worthy,  Pagan  though  she  was,  to  be  treated  as  though  she 
were  a  true  child  of  Abraham.  And  so  she  crossed  the 
threshold  of  the  house,  made  her  way  to  where  Jesus  stood, 
and  casting  herself  at  His  feet,  cried  out:  — 

"  Lord,  help  inc." 

The  Master  continued  to  display  the  same  hardness; 
nothing  seemed  to  move  Him,  neither  her  tears  nor  the 
sympathy  of  the  Apostles,  now  quite  amazed  at  seeing  Him 
for  the  first  time  insensible  to  compassion. 

"  bet  the  children  be  filled  first,"  He  said,  "for  it  is  not 

1  S.  Mark  evidently  implies  that  the  interview  between  Jesus  ami  the 
Chanaanitish  woman  took  place  in  the  interior  of  some  house.  VJcreXduv 
et's  oUlav,  ovoiva,  T)dt\i)<Ttv  yvCovai  (vii.  24)  .  .  .  yuvr}  .  .  .  eiaeXOouaa 
7rpoiTew€aev  wpbs  tovs  irodas  avrov  (vii.  25). 

-  Matt.  xv.  23-25. 


THE   CHANAANITISII    WOMAN.  11 

fitting  to  take  the  children's  bread  and  throw  it  out  to  the 
dogs." 1 

Still  the  mother  would  not  yield.  She  bowed  beneath 
this  bitter  rebuff,  which  rated  her  as  of*  less  worth  than  an 
unclean  beast ; 2  nay,  she  would  even  endeavor  to  bend  this 
reproach  to  her  own  advantage,  and  so  manage  to  turn  His 
own  words  against  the  Christ. 

"  It  is  true,  my  Lord,"  she  answered,  "  but  even  the  little 
whelps  eat  the  crumbs3  of  the  children's  bread  which  fall 
beneath  the  table." 

At  this  Jesus  suffered  Himself  to  be  overcome ;  thus 
far  He  had  resisted  only  that  He  might  invigorate  that 
faith  which  He  saw  burning  so  steadfastly  within  her, 
thereby  exalting  it  to  the  point  of  heroism.  The  tender 
mercies  of  His  heart,  now  repressed  too  long,  suddenly 
overflowed  in  a  cry  of  joy. 

"Ah,  woman,  your  faith  is  great ;  let  it  be  done  unto  you 
as  you  will."  4 

The  Chanaanite  hastened  back  to  the  home  where  she 
had  left  her  child ;  the  demon  had  disappeared,  and  the 
little  one  was  lying  upon  her  bed. 

The  Gospel  makes  no  mention  of  other  miracles  per- 
formed in  these  Pagan  lauds.  It  only  adds  that  Jesus 
"  departed  from  the  border-land  of  Tyre,  returning  by  way 
of  Sidon  to  the  Sea  of  Galilee."5  The  road  ran  across  one 
of  the  loveliest  provinces  of  the  Eoman  Empire ;  for  Tyre, 

1  Mark  vii.  27. 

2  In  the  eyes  of  the  Jews  the  dog  was  a  foul  animal  and  the  very  type 
of  impurity,  and  so  too  now-a-days  all  through  the  East  they  are  disgusting 
creatures.  In  appearance  much  like  a  wolf,  they  slink  about  uncared  for, 
dirty,  and  gaunt,  their  only  food  refuse  and  offal.  In  their  contempt  of 
Christians,  the  Mussulmans  often  speak  of  them  by  this  injurious  epithet 
of  dogs.  In  like  manner  the  Jews  had  nicknamed  Pagans  "  Nationes 
mundi  canibus  assimilantur  "  (Midrash  TUJim,  f.  6,  3). 

3  By  the  word  i/a'x'a  lie  refers  probably  to  a  kind  of  bread  much  like 
that  of  the  Arabs,  which  resembles  our  cakes,  and  has  the  thickness  and 
the  pliancy  of  linen.  The  Orientals,  who  use  their  fingers  in  eating,  dry 
them  upon  this  bread,  and  then  toss  it  to  the  dogs.  For  this  purpose 
the  Greeks  employed  little  balls  of  bread-crumbs,  which  they  called 
a.Tro/j.aydaXiai  (Aristophanes,  Equiles,  415). 

*  Matt.  xv.  28. 
5  Mark  vii.  31. 


1:2         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Queen  of  the  Seas,  had  not  as  yet  "  become  silent  in  the 
midst  of  the  waters,"1  and  every  day  the  tides  came  in 
freighted  with  rich  argosies  of  the  world.  Sarepta  still 
kept  alive  the  memory  of  Eliaa  and  Eliseus;  Sidon  had  still 
its  famous  fisheries  of  Tyrian  purple  ;  on  every  hand,  along 
the  wayside,  were  groves  of  palm  and  orange  trees,  under 
whose  dusky  shadows  the  mysterious  rites  of  Astarte  or  of 
Baal  were  celebrated.  Hereabouts  there  was  nothing  that 
deserved  the  notice  of  Jesus  ;  His  thoughts  were  elsewhere; 
His  soul,  lifted  above  the  earth,  could  not  be  touched  by 
the  beauty  which  fades  away ;  His  glance  only  sought  cut 
those  unfortunate  ones  whom  He  might  still  venture  to 
help  and  to  comfort,  speaking  only  to  those  care-worn 
hearts  whose  courage  He  so  well  knew  how  to  revive ;  and 
thereupon  He  turned  aside  from  this  land,  too  merrily  bril- 
liant and  careless  of  aspect  to  be  a  fitting  abode  for  the 
Man  of  Sorrows.  Making  His  way  through  the  Valley  of 
the  Leontes,  He  came  out  at  the  Jordan  near  its  source, 
and  by  this  route  descended  to  the  Decapolis. 


III.  The  Second  Multiplication  of  the  Loaves. 

Mark  vii.  31-37;  viii.  1-9;  Matt,  xv  29-38. 

The  Decapolis  lies  to  the  east  of  the  Sea  of  Tiberias,  ex- 
tending in  a  northerly  direction  toward  Damascus,  and  to 
the  south  as  far  as  the  cataract  of  Jabbok.  As  its  name 
implies,  it  formed  a  confederation  of  ten  free  towns,  half 
Pagan,  which  the  Jews  had  not  been  able  to  subjugate  after 
their  return  from  the  Captivity.  Jesus  was  not  a  stranger 
nor  entirely  unknown  here  in  these  Greek  cities,  for  the 
possessed  persons  of  Gergesa  had  published  the  power  of 
their  Saviour  on  all  sides,  and  hardly  had  His  coining  been 
noised  abroad  before  they  brought  a  deaf  and  dumb  man  to 
Him.2  Those  who  had  guided  him  thither  besought  Jesus 
to  lay  His  hands  upon  him.  The  gift  of  mercy  was  not 
refused  them,  but  hoping  to  find  in  the  Decapolis  the  same 

*  Ezekiel  xxvii.  32,  2  Mark  vii.  32-35. 


SECOND  MULTIPLICATION  OF  THE  LOAVES.         13 

seclusion  which  he  had  enjoyed  in  Phoenicia,  He  desired  to 
perform  the  cure  in  privacy.  Therefore,  He  took  the  fee- 
ble fellow's  hand  in  His  own,  led  him  away  from  the 
throng,  and  there  laid  His  fingers  lightly  upon  his  ears  to 
denote  that  they  were  to  open,  and  with  a  little  saliva 
touched  the  tongue  which  was  soon  to  be  loosed;  then  He 
raised  His  eyes  Heavenward  and  groaned,  sighing  not 
merely  for  the  sad  condition  to  which  sin  has  reduced 
mankind,  but  for  the  many  hearts  still  hardened  to  the 
truth. 

"  Ephphetha," 1  He  said.    "  Be  thou  opened  ! " 
"  And  immediately  his  ears  were  opened,  the  string  of 
his  tongue  was  loosed,  and   the   dumb   man   spake   dis- 
tinctly." 

Jesus  enjoined  secrecy  upon  the  witnesses  of  this  mar- 
vel,2 but  they  only  listened  to  the  promptings  of  heartfelt 
gratitude.  "  The  more  He  forbade  them  to  speak,  the  more 
they  published  it  abroad :  He  doeth  all  things  well,  they 
said ;  He  hath  made  the  deaf  to  hear  and  the  dumb  to 
speak."  In  vain  did  the  Master  retire  into  the  wild  and 
desolate  highlands  lying  to  the  east  of  Genesareth  Lake, 
wishing  to  avoid  their  eager  demonstrations.  From  the 
hill-slope  whereon  He  found  a  resting  place  soon  He  saw  a 
great  crowd  of  country-folk  pushing  their  way  up  to  where 
He  sat.3  On  every  hand  they  were  bringing  all  manner 
"  of  dumb,  and  blind,  and  lame,  and  maimed,4  and  many 
others,  and  these  they  put  down  at  His  feet,"  fully  confident 
that  they  would  rise  up  sound  and  well.  Touched  by  their 
faith,  Jesus  granted  the  petitions  of  each  and  all,  "  inso- 
much that  the  people  were  struck  with  wonder  when  they 
saw  the  dumb  speaking,  the  cripples  made  whole,  the  blind 

1  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  though  He  was  among  colonists  of  Greek 
extraction,  and  speaking  the  language  of  that  country,  Jesus  employed 
the  Aramean  word  "Ephphetha,"  nfiDHX.     From  this  and  other  similar 

facts  it  has  been  supposed  that  in  all  likelihood  He  made  use  of  this 
language  ordinarily. 

2  Mark  vii.  36,  37. 

3  Matt.  xv.  29-31. 

4  The  proper  signification  of  kv\\6s,  as  S.  Jerome  observes,  is  "one 
who  has  no  use  of  his  arms," 


14        THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

seeing;"  and  in  their  joy  these  Pagans  of  the  Decapolis 
"loudly  glorified  the  God  of  Israel." 

However,  the  concourse  was  growing  greater  from  hour 
to  hour;  in  a  short  time  four  thousand  men,  without  count- 
ing their  women  and  children,  had  all  gathered  together  in 
this  far-ofl  wilderness.1  For  all  of  three  days  they  stayed 
close  about  the  Saviour,  only  desiring  to  follow  Him ;  but 
such  little  food  as  they  had  soon  disappeared,  and  being 
remote  from  any  village,  they  began  to  suffer  the  weakness 
of  hunger.  Once  more  Jesus  was  minded  to  spread  a  table 
for  His  people  in  the  midst  of  the  wilderness,  and  He  called 
the  Apostles. 

"I  have  compassion  on  this  throng,"  He  said,2  "because 
for  three  days  now  they  have  remained  with  Me,  and  they 
have  nothing  to  eat.  If  I  send  them  back  thus  to  their 
homes,  their  strength  will  fail  them,  for  some  have  come 
from  far  away." 

The  Twelve  were  surprised  at  any  such  plan.  Unques- 
tionably they  had  not  forgotten  the  prodigy  performed  near 
Bethsaida  a  lew  months  earlier,  but  the  answer  given  to 
the  Chanaanitish  woman  was  still  fresher  in  their  mem- 
ory,—  how  that  it  is  not  fitting  to  cast  the  children's  bread 
to  dogs,  —  and  they  had  no  notion  that  their  Master  would 
lavish  upon  these  Pagans  any  such  bounties  as  He  had 
been  wont  to  bestow  on  the  sons  of  Israel.3  So  they 
answered :  — 

"  How  are  we  to  find  enough  bread  in  this  desert  place 
to  satisfy  so  great  a  multitude  ? " 

"How  many  loaves  have  you  ?"  asked  Jesus. 

"Seven,"  was  the  reply,  "and  a  few  small  fishes." 

Upon  that  He  bade  the  throngs  sit  down  upon  the 
ground  ;  took  the  seven  loaves  and  the  fishes ;  then,  giving 
thanks,  He  broke  them,  gave  them  to  His  disciples,  and  the 
disciples  gave  them  to  the  people.  The  four  thousand  men, 
the  women-folk,  and  the  children  ate  and  were  filled.  This 
time,  without  waiting  to  be  prompted  by  Him,  the  Apostles 
gathered  up  all  the  fragments  that  were  left,  and  they  filled 

*  Matt.  xv.  38.  2  Matt  xv.  32  ;  Mark  vii.  3. 

8  Matt.  xv.  33-37. 


SECOND  MULTIPLICATION  OF  THE  LOAVES.        15 

seven  large  hampers.1  Afterwards  He  had  still  to  dismiss 
the  concourse  whose  faith  had  made  them  intrude  upon  the 
solitude  of  the  Master.  However,  from  this  gathering 
Jesus  had  not  to  encounter  either  that  obstinacy  or  those 
ambitious  cravings  which  His  former  miracle  had  excited 
among  the  Jews  at  Bethsaida.  All  showed  their  willing- 
ness to  obey  His  behests,  and  readily  departed.2 

1  The  Evangelists  are  not  speaking  here  of  the  small  rush  baskets, 
Ko<pivovs,  which  were  used  in  the  first  multiplication  of  loaves,  but  of  those 
hampers  called  o-rrvpldas,  evidently  of  a  much  larger  size,  since  it  was  a 
pannier  of  this  kind  which  the  faithful  used  in  dropping  S.  Paul  down  over 
the  ramparts  of  Damascus  (Acts  ix.  25). 

2  Mark  viii.  9. 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE  CONFESSION   OF   PETER. 
Matt  xv.  39;  xvi.  1-28;  Mark  viii.  10-38;  ix.  1  ;  Luke  ix.  18-27. 

When  the  crowds  had  all  disappeared  Jesus  walked  down 
the  moorlands  to  the  shore,  whence  a  bark  bore  Him  across 
to  the  opposite  bank.1  What  design  could  it  have  been 
that  moved  Him  to  re-visit  these  places  which  from  now 
on  were  destined  to  be  so  hostile  to  Him  ?  Was  it  the 
desire  to  once  more  oversow  the  fields  of  Genesareth  with 
the  holy  seed  of  His  word,  or  did  He  hope  to  find,  further 
inland,  in  the  hill  country  of  Zabnlon,  a  still  profounder 
solitude  ?  The  latter  hypothesis  seems  the  likeliest  one, 
after  all ;  for  the  Master  ordered  them  to  land,  not  at 
Capharnaum,  but  upon  the  desolate  shores  of  Magdala,2 
and  Saint  Mark  tells  us  that  He  set  out  immediately  for 
Dalmanutha,3  an  obscure  hamlet  lying  among  the  mountains 
which  separate  Magdala  from  Tiberias. 

But  despite  the  care  which  Jesus  took  to  conceal  His 
presence,  He  could  not  escape  the  persecution  of  the  Phar- 
isees and  Sadducees.4     For  a  considerable  time  they  had 

1  Matt.  xv.  39. 

2  The  Manuscripts  give  several  different  forms  for  the  name  of  this 
country.  It  is  probable  that  the  original  text  of  S.  Matthew  contained 
Ma7a5di',  and  that  afterwards  the  better  known  name  of  May8a\d  was 
substituted  for  it. 

s  Mark  viii.  10.  "We  know  nothing  definite  in  regard  to  this  place. 
About  a  half-hour's  walk  from  Magdala  to  the  south  there  is  a  narrow 
valley  which  slopes  downward  to  the  lake  ;  here,  surrounded  by  ninny  and 
plentiful  springs,  the  ruins  of  a  village  are  still  visible.  This  is  the  place 
(the  Arabs  call  it  Ain  el-Barid6h  :  "  Cold  Springs"),  where  we  may  with 
good  reason  locate  Dalmanutha. 

4  Matt.  xvi.  1. 


THE  CONFESSION  OF  PETER.  17 

appeared  to  be  indifferent  to  the  movements  of  the  Christ. 
So  absorbed  were  they  by  the  schemings  of  their  political 
life  that  they  bothered  themselves  but  little  as  to  this 
Galilean  Prophet  and  His  "  Kingdom  of  Heaven  ; "  but  the 
Jewish  Scribes  had  at  last  managed  to  arouse  them  from 
their  state  of  indifference.  Tiberias,  where  Herod  had  a 
royal  residence,  was  near  by,  and  the  courtiers  and  high 
officials  of  this  prince  belonged  mostly  to  the  sect  of  the 
Sadduceans  ;  accordingly  it  is  some  of  their  number  whom 
we  find  here,  mingling  with  the  emissaries  of  the  Sanhe- 
drin.1  In  former  years  the  Saviour  had  found  it  sufficient 
to  withdraw  for  a  short  space,  in  order  to  quiet  the  mistrust 
of  the  Tetrarch ;  but  since  that  time  the  blood  of  John 
Baptist  was  upon  Herod,  destroying  his  peace ;  his  courtiers 
and  ministers  were  readily  instigated  against  Jesus,  and 
promptly  joined  the  Zealots  of  the  Law  in  their  relentless 
pursuit. 

This  time  the  attack  of  His  sworn  foes  took  a  new  turn. 
Until  now  the  Pharisees  had  been  content  to  depreciate  the 
Miracles  of  the  Christ  by  attributing  them  to  Beelzebub, 
persuading  the  people  that  no  prodigy  performed  upon  earth 
can  be  regarded  as  proof  of  a  Divine  Mission,  because  there 
is  none  which  is  beyond  the  power  of  the  devils.  But  here 
at  Dalmanutha  they  loudly  challenged  the  Saviour,  defying 
Him  "  to  work  some  sign  upon  high,"  —  to  cause  the  sun 
to  halt,  as  Joshua  had  done,  or,  like  Samuel,  bring  the 
thunderbolt  crashing  down  from  out  the  cloudless  sky,  or 
encompass  Himself  about,  like  Elias  in  the  days  of  old, 
with  lightnings  and  flame.2 

Jesus  disdained  this  provocation,  as  once  before  in  the 
Desert  He  had  spurned  the  demands  of  Satan.  All  power 
was  given  to  Him  in  Heaven  and  upon  earth,  —  this  the 
poor  and  the  suffering  of  Judea  knew  well;  but  to  be  so 

1  Shortly  after  this,  speaking  of  the  adversaries  who  were  to  attack  His 
doctrine,  Jesus  said  (as  S.  Matthew  reports  it,  xvi.  6)  :  "Beware  of  the 
leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  ; "  S.  Mark's  evidence  reads  (viii. 
15)  :  "Beware  of  the  leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  of  Herod."  Taking 
these  two  texts  together  in  this  way,  it  is  natural  to  conclude  that  the 
Sadducees  spoken  of  here  belonged  to  the  court  of  Herod. 

2  Matt.  xvi.  1  ;  Jos.  x.  12 ;  1  Kings  xii.  17  ;  4  Kings  i.  10-13. 

VOL.  II.  —  2 


18      THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

conciliatory  to  His  enemies  and  to  triumph  over  them  by  a 
profitless  display  of  His  Divine  Attributes,  —  so  far  as  this 
the  Master  could  not  condescend.1  He  was  content  to 
turn  His  face  westward,  pointing  to  the  sun,  whose  last 
rays  were  veiling  the  distant  mountain  peaks  in  a  mantle 
of  gold. 

"  In  the  evening,"  was  His  answer,2  "  you  say :  '  It  will 
be  fine  to-morrow,  for  the  sun  is  red.'  And  at  dawn  : 
'  There  will  be  a  storm  to-day,  for  the  sky  burns  with  a 
lowering  glow.'  Hypocrites !  you  discern  what  the  face 
of  the  heavens  portends,3  and  yet  you  know  not  how  to 
recognize  the  signs  of  the  times  in  which  you  live  ! " 

Indeed  what  more  open  and  explicit  signs  could  they 
have  than  the  Sceptre  now  departed  from  Juda,  Daniel's 
Weeks  of  Years  fulfilled,  the  message  of  the  Forerunner, 
the  sick  and  feeble  healed,  the  dead  raised  to  life  ? 

"  What ! "  He  exclaimed,  "  does  this  wicked  and  adul- 
terous generation  seek  a  sign  !  There  shall  be  given  it  no 
other  sign  but  that  of  Jonas  the  Prophet,"4  And  leaving 
the  Pharisees  with  this  prophecy  of  His  Eesurrection, 
Jesus  returned  into  their  little  vessel. 

Once  more  He  quitted  the  shores  of  Galilee  and  set  sail 
for  the  northern  part  of  the  lake  ;  and  as  they  drew  away 
from  the  land,  He  watched  the  bank  fading  away  and  van- 

1  "  His  Miracles  are  of  a  peculiar  nature  and  of  an  unwonted  character. 
Here  we  have  no  'signs  in  the  heavens,'  such  as  the  Jews  demanded  of 
Him  ;  almost  all  are  performed  upon  the  living  bodies  of  men,  and  in 
order  to  heal  their  infirmities.  All  these  miracles  betray  His  loving- 
kindness  rather  than  His  power,  and  do  not  so  much  amaze  the  beholders 
as  they  stir  the  very  depths  of  the  human  heart "  (Bossuet,  Discours  sur 
Vhistoire  univcrscllc,  iie  partie,  chapitre  xix.). 

2  Matt.  xvi.  2-4. 

3  Like  all  eastern  nations,  the  Jews  diligently  scrutinized  the  currents 
of  wind,  the  variations  of  temperature,  the  aspect  of  the  sky,  ami  drew 
from  their  observations  certain  rules  by  which  they  could  foretell  fine  or 
foul  weather  with  considerable  accuracy  (Lightfoot,  Horce  Hcb?-aicce,  in 
Matt.  xvi.  2).  Moreover,  this  science  was  widely  cultivated,  not  only  in 
the  East,  but  in  Greece  and  at  Rome:  "Si  circa  occidentem  rubescunt 
nubes,  serenitatem  futura  diei  spondent ;  concavus  oriens  pluvias  pra- 
dicit ;  idem  ventos,  cum  ante  exorientem  eum  nubes  rubescunt ;  quod  et  si 
nigra  rubentibus  intervenerint  {wvppd^ei  CTvyvtifav,  Matt.  xvi.  3),  et 
pluvias"  (Pliny,  Hisloria  naturalis,  xviii.  35). 

4  Mark  viii.  12  ;  Matt.  xvi.  4. 


THE  CONFESSION  OF  PETER.  19 

ishiug  in  the  soft,  shadowy  haze  :  Capharnaum,  Bethsai'da> 
Chorozain,  one  after  another,  had  rejected  Him,  —  had 
abandoned  Him  to  His  enemies  ! 1  Now  as  it  happened, 
in  the  haste  of  their  departure,  the  Apostles  had  forgotten 
to  renew  their  store  of  provisions ;  but  one  loaf  of  bread 
remained,  and  they  made  the  discovery  only  when  their 
bark  was  far  out  from  land.2  As  they  were  grieving  over 
their  neglect,  Jesus  spoke  to  them  in  words  which  were 
meant  to  turn  their  minds  from  these  material  cares :  — 

"  Take  good  heed,"  He  said,  "  and  beware  of  the  leaven 
of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees."3 

The  disciples,  thinking  that  the  Master  shared  their 
anxiety  about  their  daily  food,  inquired  of  each  other  what 
He  would  have  them  understand  by  this  speech.  Was  He 
reproaching  them  for  coming  on  board  without  stores,  or 
did  He  mean  to  forbid  them  to  partake  of  any  food  along 
wTith  Sadducees  and  Pharisees  ?  Not  one  of  them  was 
reminded  of  that  unseen  leaven  which,  fermenting  in  the 
human  heart,  sours  and  corrupts  its  life  ;  although  Jesus 
had  employed  a  metaphor  often  used  by  the  Jews  to 
describe  the  effects  of  sin,  still  they  understood  Him 
not. 

"  Men  of  little  faith,"  He  exclaimed,4  "  why  do  you 
think  that  you  are  without  bread  ?  So,  then,  are  you  too 
devoid  of  either  sense  or  reason  ?  Are  your  hearts  blinded  ? 
Have  you  eyes  only  that  you  may  not  see,  and  ears  that 
you  may  not  hear  ?  When  I  broke  the  five  loaves  for 
the  five  thousand  men,  how  many  baskets  of  fragments 
did  you  take  up  ? " 

"  Twelve,"  they  said. 

"  And  when  I  broke  the  seven  loaves  for  four  thousand 
men,  how  many  full  hampers  did  you  gather  up  ? " 

"  Seven,"  they  replied. 

"  Then  how  is  it  that  you  do  not  understand  that  it  was 

1  Mark  viii.  13. 

2  Mark  viii.  14. 

3  Matt.  xvi.  6.  "The  leaven  of  Herod,"  says  S.  Mark  (viii.  15).  As 
we  have  noted  above,  it  follows  plainly  from  this  that  the  Tetrarch  and  his 
voluptuous  court  shared  the  incredulity  of  the  Sadducees. 

*  Matt.  xvi.  8-11  ;  Mark  viii.  17-21. 


20         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

not  of  bread  I  spoke,  when  I  told  yon  to  beware  of  the 
Leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  ?"* 

From  this  rebuke  the  Apostles  began  to  see  how  they 
had  wounded  the  Heart  of  the  Master  by  so  disregarding 
His  loving  care,  ay,  even  His  power.  Their  higher 
thoughts  aroused  once  more  they  finally  glimpsed  His 
hidden  meaning :  it  was  not  of  the  leaven  which  is  put 
into  bread  whereof  He  told  them  to  beware,  but  of  the 
doctrine  of  His  enemies. 

The  morning  of  the  next  day  they  made  land  in  the 
kingdom  of  Philip,  and  Jesus  wandered  along  the  Jordan 
until  they  were  not  far  from  Bethsaida- Julias,  whereupon 
some  people  brought  a  blind  man  for  Him  to  lay  His 
hands  upon  him.2  Studious  as  ever  to  refrain  from  mani- 
festing any  striking  proofs  of  His  power  outside  the  land 
of  Israel,  the  Lord  took  the  poor  sufferer  by  the  hand  and 
led  him  away  from  the  busy  town  in  order  to  perform  the 
cure  unnoticed.  But  He  did  not  accomplish  this  prodigy 
(as  He  had  done  many  others,  which  wTe  have  witnessed 
so  often  in  Galilee)  easily  and  without  effort,  with  a  word 
or  by  the  mere  movement  of  His  will;  for  it  was  part  of 
the  hidden  counsels  of  the  Godhead  that  the  effects  of  His 
supernatural  power  should  be  proportioned  to  the  faith  of 
those  who  implore  His  aid.  Just  as  the  unbelief  of  the 
Nazarenes  had  stood  in  the  way  of  His  working  any  mir- 
acle for  them,3  so  here  at  Cresarea-Philippi  the  faith  of  the 
blind  man  was  still  so  weak  as  to  hinder  his  being  cured 
at  once,  and  accordingly  we  see  Jesus  gently  opening  the 
eyes  of  his  body,  little  by  little,  in  proportion  as  He  dis- 
pelled the  darkness  from  his  soul.  For  this  reason  now 
He  multiplied  the  exterior  acts,  as  though  He  wished  to 
quicken  the  suppliant's  desire  for  salvation,  —  the  firm 
hands  laid  over  his  eyes,  the  spittle  of  the  Christ  moisten- 
ing them  like  a  heavenly  balm. 

"  Do  you  see  anything  ? "  Jesus  asked.4 

Glowering  about  him,  the  poor  man  suddenly  cried,  "  I 


1  Matt.  xvi.  11,  12.  2  Mark  viii.  22. 

3  Mark  vi.  5.  4  Mark  viii.  23-26. 


THE   CONFESSION  OF  PETEK  21 

see  men  walking,  yet  they  look  to  me  like  trees  !  "  And 
in  his  delight  he  turned  toward  the  Master  again. 

A  second  time  the  Saviour's  hands  touched  his  eyes,  and 
at  once  they  saw  all  things  clearly.  Jesus  imposed  strict 
silence  upon  the  man,  bidding  him:  — 

"  Return  to  your  home,  and  if  you  should  come  into  the 
town,  tell  this  to  no  one." 

In  this  instance  it  would  seem  as  if  the  Lord  were  better 
obeyed  than  a  little  while  before  in  the  Decapolis,  for  we 
see  Him  shortly  afterwards  leaving  the  village  accompan- 
ied by  His  disciples  alone.1  In  this  way  He  reached  the 
sources  of  the  stream  and  arrived  at  the  capital,  called  by 
the  Tetrarch  Caesarea-Philippi,  in  honor  of  Tiberius  Caesar, 
his  protector  and  patron.  Built  upon  the  ruins  of  ancient 
Dan,  Csesarea  still  preserved  Pan's  Grotto,  which  was  so 
famous  in  the  days  of  the  Greek  colonists  that  for  a  long 
time  the  city  bore  the  name  of  Panea.2  But  neither  these 
relics  of  Paganism,  nor  the  more  recent  splendors  of  Cass- 
area  attracted  the  Lord.  He  did  no  more  than  pass  through 
the  outskirts  of  the  city,3  and  preferred  to  seek  a  resting- 
place  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Hermon, —  in  the  valleys  which 
the  water-springs  of  the  Jordan  fill  with  leavy  coverts  and 
the  rustling  of  numberless  brooks. 

Among  the  rest  there  is  one  memorable  fact  which  will 
ever  make  this  forest-country  illustrious.  Here,  while 
Jesus  was  praying4  in  solitude,  all  at  once,  breaking  off 
from  the  prayer  which  was  His  only  repose  here  below, 
He  called  to  His  disciples,  who  had  now  drawn  aloof  from 
Him,  and  began  to  question  them. 

"  Who  do  they  say  that  I  am,  I,  the  Son  of  Man  ? " 

Sorrowful  was  the  answer.  His  Apostles  confessed  that 
as  yet  no  one  in  Israel  had  acknowledged  Jesus  to  be  the 

1  Matt.  xvi.  13,  14. 

2  The  same  name  slightly  modified  is  still  to  be  found  in  Banias,  the 
modern  title  of  this  little  town. 

3  Luke  ix.  18.  Et's  to  p-epr]  .  „  .  (Matt.  xvi.  13)  ;  els  ras  Kiifias  Kcu- 
(rapeias  rrjs  QiXLttttov  (Mark  viii.  27). 

*  It  is  to  S.  Luke  that  we  owe  this  precious  detail.  This  Evangelist, 
who  passes  over  in  silence  the  whole  journey  to  Tyre  and  through  the 
Decapolis,  here  resumes  the  general  order  of  events. 


22         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Messiah.  Some,  like  Herod,  overmastered  by  their  guilty 
fears  had  taken  the  Christ  for  a  resurrected  John  the  Bap- 
tist;1 others  believed  they  were  listening  to  Elias ;  others 
called  Him  Jeremy.  "It  is  the  Seer,"  was  the  popular 
cry,  "  who  returns  among  us  to  repeat  his  lamentations." 
Many  imagined  He  was  some  new  Prophet,  but  none 
had  seen  in  Jesus  that  which  He  is  unto  all  time. 
And  although  certain  stupendous  marvels  had  mani- 
festly declared  His  Messiahship,  these  were  no  more  than 
flashes  of  lightning  for  an  instant  glittering  through  the 
glooms  of  night ;  throughout  the  land  of  Juda,  the  Light 
shone  amid  darkness,  and  the  darkness  comprehended  it 
not. 

"  And  now  for  your  own  part,"  Jesus  said,  "  Who  do  you 
say  that  I  am  ?"2 

Put  to  them  at  a  time  when  the  Master  was  wandering 
afar  from  His  native  land,  this  question  was  nothing  less 
than  a  decisive  trial  of  His  Apostles.  Simon  stood  the 
test  without  flinching.  Instantly  he  took  up  the  word,  in 
the  name  of  his  brethren,  and  addressing  Jesus  in  his 
straightforward  fashion  said  :  — 

"  Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Living  God." 

The  faith  of  Peter,  quick  aud  living  as  of  old  it  was, 
whether  amid  the  bowlings  of  the  storm,  or  in  the  disap- 
probation of  Capharnaum,  now  lifted  the  veil  which  over- 
hung the  Divinity  of  the  Saviour,  and,  rising  above  all 
that  which  is  of  man,  proclaimed  Him  Son  of  God,  equal 
and  consubstautial  with  His  Father,  —  which  is  to  say,  God 
Himself. 

Listening  to  this  profession  from  the  lips  of  His  Apostle, 
Jesus  responded  :  — 

"  Blessed  art  thou  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  because  neither 
flesh  nor  blood3  has  revealed  this  unto  thee,  but  My  Father 
Who  is  in  Heaven.  And  now  I  say  to  thee :  Thou  art 
Peter  (a  Eock),  and  upon  this  Eock  I  will  build  My  Church 

i  Matt.  xvi.  14. 
2  Matt.  xvi.  16-19. 

8  D"U  "ibD,  "Mesh  and  Wood,"  is  an  expression  often  used  by  the  Tal- 
roudists  to  designate  the  inferior  part  of  our  nature. 


THE   CONFESSION  OF  PETER.  23 

and  the  gates 1  of  Hell  shall  not  prevail  against  thee.  And 
I  will  give  unto  thee  the  Keys  of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven, 
and  all  that  thou  shalt  loose  upon  earth  shall  be  loosed  in 
Heaven." 

These  words  conferred  the  Primacy  upon  the  son  of 
Jonas,  and  upon  him  established  that  Masterwork  of  the 
Christ,  which  is  His  Church,  a  name  we  find  here  men- 
tioned for  the  first  time.2  Simon,  the  weak  mortal  of 
flesh  and  blood,  was  become  the  Foundation-stone,  des- 
tined to  brave  all  assaults  of  Hell.  In  making  this  Apostle 
the  base  of  His  eternal  Church,  Jesus  assured  him  the  same 
stability  which  He  gave  the  Holy  Edifice,  transmitting  the 
privileges  of  Peter  to  his  successors.  Like  him  they  should 
all  be  seated  in  the  Chair  of  Infallibility  and  hold  in  their 
hands  the  Keys,  symbol  of  supreme  authority.  All  who 
were  to  come  after  him,  even  as  he,  must  give  laws  to  the 
Church,  guiding  in  the  paths  of  salvation  kings  and  peoples, 
pastors  aud  their  flocks ;  they  must  judge  without  appeal, 
bind  and  loose  upon  earth  and  in  Heaven,  opening  and 
shutting  the  gates  of  the  celestial  Kingdom.  Such  powers 
are  divine,  but  they  are  the  natural  consequences  of  that 
promise  made  to  the  son  of  Jonas  :3  — 

"  Thou  art  Peter,  and  upon  this  Ptock  I  will  build  My 
Church." 

But  these  surpassing  splendors  of  the  Church  were  only 
as  yet  a  fair  and  distant  prospect ;  for  Peter  and  his  com- 
panions there  was  still  in  store  the  fierce  struggle  which 
precedes  the  victory,  and  straight  before  Jesus  Himself 

1  The  gates  of  cities  and  palaces  are  of  great  magnificence  in  Eastern 
lands,  and  serve  as  a  meeting-place  not  only  for  the  common  citizens  hut 
for  the  Tribunals  and  public  Councils.  From  this  fact  the  word  "Gate" 
in  the  Oriental  languages  came  to  be  a  synonym  for  the  supreme  authority, 
whatever  it  might  be  (as  to-day  we  have  the  Sublime  Porte).  At  Jeru- 
salem a  Council  of  High-Priests  was  frequently  held  beneath  the  gates  of 
the  Temple,  and  the  College  of  Scribes  was  accustomed  to  meet  near  the 
Gate  of  Sarah. 

2  There  is  only  one  other  mention  mads  of  it  in  the  Gospel  :  in  S.  Mat- 
thew (xviii.  17). 

3  The  decrees  of  the  Vatican  Council  which  determine  the  extent  of  the 
Papal  jurisdiction  and  the  infallible  supremacy  of  the  Roman  Pontiff,  are 
the  most  complete  and  most  authoritative  commentary  upon  the  words  of 
Jesus. 


24        THIRD    YEAR   OF   T11E  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

there  stretched  a  weary  way  of  sorrows.  For,  with  a  price 
set  upon  His  head,  harassed  and  hunted  down  by  spies 
and  informers,  hereafter  He  must  needs  keep  silence  as  to 
the  unconquerable  Kingdom  He  had  come  to  establish. 
So,  scarcely  had  He  uttered  the  divine  promise  to  His 
Apostles,  out  here  alone  in  the  forest,  when  He  commanded 
them  authoritatively  to  observe  the  strictest  silence  so  far 
as  concerned  what  they  had  just  heard  from  Him.1  The 
Confession  of  Peter,  his  Primacy  in  the  Church,  his  priv- 
ileges and  prerogatives  were  as  a  sacred  confidence,  which 
must  not  go  beyond  the  Apostolic  College ;  and  the  reason 
He  gave  them  for  this  was  that  His  enemies  would  shortly 
put  Him  to  death. 

It  was  the  first  time2  that  the  Master  had  spoken  so 
openly  of  His  death ;  hitherto  He  had  only  made  mys- 
terious allusions  to  it.  And  indeed  in  this  instance  He 
did  not  go  so  far  as  to  unveil  the  utter  ignominy  of  the 
Cross,  deeming  it  enough  to  declare  "  that  He  must  go  up 
to  Jerusalem,  there  to  suffer  many  things  at  the  hands  of 
the  Ancients,  the  Pontiffs,  and  the  Scribes,  and  to  die."3 
As  yet  He  did  not  add  that  "He  was  to  be  delivered  by 
these  men  into  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles,"  and  until  the 
ver}r  time  of  the  Passion  He  forbore  to  tell  them  "  that 
He  was  to  be  spit  upon,  whipped,  and  bound  to  a  Cross."4 
Knowing  by  experience  the  weakness  of  His  disciples,  He 
was  careful  to  shield  them  against  despair.  So  then,  that 
He  might  reawaken  their  courage,  He  now  foretold  "  that 
after  three  days  He  would  rise  again." 

Consoling  as  this  promise  was,  it  could  not  satisfy  the 
sturdy  ardor  of  Peter.  The  great  praise  bestowed  upon 
him,  and  the  joy  he  felt  at  having  confessed,  in  the  others' 
name,  the  Divinity  of  his  Master,  had  now  excited  all  his 
vanity.  In  his  eager  self-sufficiency  he  took  it  upon 
him  to  withstand  the  Lord  Himself,  and  to  bid  Him 
proceed  no  further  along  paths  which  would  lead  to  death. 

1  Mark  viii.  30. 

2'Air6  t6t€  tfpZtiTo  (Matt.  xvi.  21).  "Antea  non  ostenderat"  (Bengel, 
Ononum,  in  loco). 

8  Matt.  xvi.  21  ;  Mark  ix.  31. 
*  Matt.  xx.  19  ;  Mark  x.  33. 


THE   CONFESSION  OF  PETER.  25 

Grasping  His  hand,1  he  drew  Him  to  one  side  and  began 
to  chide  Him  for  His  words. 

"Now,  please  God,  this  shall  not  happen  to  you,  Lord  !" 

Jesus  turned  away  from  him,  and  looking  toward  the 
Apostles  He  spoke  in  a  tone  so  loud  that  those  who  had 
listened  to  His  eulogy  of  Peter  should  likewise  hear  this 
stern  rebuke :  — 

"Get  thee  behind  Me,  Satan!2  Thou  art  a  scandal 
unto  Me,  for  thy  wisdom  is  not  of  God  but  of  man." 

While  Peter  stood  there,  humbled  and  silent,  Jesus  re- 
called their  minds  to  His  approaching  sacrifice,  and  drew 
from  the  thought  a  powerful  lesson  which  the  Twelve 
were  not  the  only  ones  to  hear.  Meantime  many  of  the 
country-folk  had  collected  together  at  a  short  distance 
from  this  youthful  Eabbi  Who  was  as  yet  a  stranger  to 
them.  The  Saviour  bade  them  come  nearer,3  then,  with 
that  same  tone  of  authority  wThich  He  was  wont  to  use  in 
Galilee,  He  began  to  instruct  them  ;  telling  them  that  the 
great  duty  of  life  is  to  renounce  one's  self,  to  sacrifice  every- 
thing in  the  pursuit  of  truth  and  righteousness,  forgetting 
the  body  and  its  cravings,  the  soul  and  its  most  intimate 
promptings.4  Once  more  He  repeated  what  He  had  al- 
ready said,5  that  along  this  rough  and  grievous  pathway 
they  had  but  to  follow  in  His  footsteps,  and,  like  Him, 
bear  their  cross  by  mortifying  their  passions.6  This  was 
what  the  Master  had  called  "  losing  one's  soul  in  order  to 
save  it." 

"  Of  what  profit  is  it  to  a  man,"  He  exclaimed,  "  to  gain 

1  UpoaXa^o/jLevos  avrov  (Matt.  xvi.  22).  "Dicitur  de  personis  cupide 
maim  prehendentibus  aliquam  "  (Wahl,  Clavis  Novi  Tcstamenti). 

2  The  word  Satan  need  not  necessarily  be  taken  in  the  sense  we  give  to 
it,  for  the  Hebrew  jtOK?  is  very  frequently  used  in  Scripture  to  desig- 
nate any  dangerous  and  persistent  adversary  (Num.  xxii.  22  ;  1  Kings 
xxix.  4). 

3  Mark  viii.  34. 

4  Matt.  xvi.  24-26. 
6  Matt.  x.  38,  39. 

6  Undoubtedly  this  allusion  to  the  Crucifixion  was  hardly  at  all  under- 
stood by  those  who  heard  these  words  ;  for  Jesus,  as  we  have  observed 
already,  had  never  clearly  revealed  to  the  Apostles  that  ignominious  tor- 
ture under  which  He  was  to  die. 


26         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JEHUS. 

the  universe,  if  so  doing  he  loses  his  soul  ?  What  will  he 
give  iu  exchange  for  his  soul  ?  " 

This  saying  threw  a  chill  shadow  of  foreboding  over  the 
Apostles'  spirits.  In  order  to  reinvigorate  their  faith,  the 
Lord  forthwith  announced  His  future  Advent,  surrounded 
by  Angels,  so  to  reward  His  tried  and  tested  followers  ; 1 
then  before  their  eyes  He  set  forth  the  splendor  of  that 
great  Day,  when  His  Church  in  its  triumph  would  sup- 
plant the  earthly  realm  of  Israel ;  and  finally  He  told  them 
of  the  hour,  now  near  at  hand,  when  three  of  His  Apostles 
were  to  be  brought  face  to  face  with  the  Divine  Being. 

"  There  are  those  among  you,"  He  said,  "  who  shall  not 
taste  death  until  they  have  seen  the  Kingdom  of  God."2 

Six  days  later  this  Prophecy  was  accomplished  iu  the 
persons  of  Peter,  James,  and  John,  who  fell  down  at  the 
feet  of  their  transfigured  Master.  But  even  in  the  crowds 
which  listened  to  these  words  there  stood  more  than  one 
disciple  who  was  to  survive  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem,  and 
with  the  eyes  of  the  flesh  would  behold  the  new  reign  of 
the  Risen  Christ. 

*  Matt.  xvi.  4. 

2  Mark  ix.  1.  S.  Matthew  (xvi.  28)  gives  this  speech  of  the  Lord  under 
a  somewhat  different  form  .  "Many  shall  not  taste  death  hefore  tiny  sec 
the  Son  of  Man  coming  into  His  Kingdom."  The  Fathers  believed  that 
this  was  spoken  in  reference  to  the  Transfiguration  ;  but,  as  Maldonatus 
has  observed,  the  Christ  could  not  call  that  glorious  manifestation  "  His 
Kingdom,"  except  as  a  foreshadowing  of  what  was  to  come  :  "Christus 
transfigurationem  regnum  suum  vocat,  non  quia  proprie  regnum,  sed  cpiia 
futuri  regni  imago  erat"  (Maldonatus,  in  loco). 


CHAPTER   III. 

THE  TRANSFIGURATION. 

I.    Jesus  on  Mount  Tabor. 

Luke  ix.  2S-45  ;  Mark  ix.  2-32 ;  Matt.  xvii.  1-23. 

Since  this  instruction  a  week  had  elapsed,  during  which 
the  Master  descended  the  valley  of  the  Jordan,  then  quietly 
and  unheeded  took  the  mountain  track  which  leads  across 
the  hills  lying  along  the  eastern  shore  of  Lake  Genesareth. 
On  the  eighth  day *  the  Evangelists  show  Him  wending 
His  way  up  the  steep  sides  "  of  a  tall  mountain,"  which 
they  do  not  mention  by  name,  yet  it  is  none  other  than 
Tabor,2  if  we  may  trust  the  testimony  of  Tradition. 

1  "About  eight  days,"  according  to  S.  Luke  (ix.  26),  "six  days  later," 
say  both  S.  Matthew  (xvii.  1)  and  S.  Mark  (ix.  1).  In  other  words  six  full 
days  had  elapsed  since  the  time  when  Peter  confessed  the  Divinity  of  the 
Christ ;  and  on  the  evening  of  the  eighth  day  took  place  the  Transfigura- 
tion. 

2  Mark  ix.  1.  The  scholars  who  would  make  Hermon  the  scene  of  the 
Transfiguration,  have  most  of  the  traditions  against  them.  As  early  as  the 
fourth  century,  S.  Cyril,  of  Jerusalem,  declared  distinctly  in  favor  of  Tabor 
(Catecli.,  xii.  0),  and  in  the  time  of  S.  Jerome  there  were  three  Churches 
erected  there  upon  the  heights,  in  memory  of  Peter's  tents,  which  certainly 
testified  to  the  antiquity  of  this  belief  (S.  Jerome,  Epistola  xlvi.  12  ;  An- 
toninus the  Martyr,  Itinerarium,  vi. ).  The  objections  of  modern  criticism 
are  far  from  being  unanswerable;  for  (1)  the  Sacred  Text  does  not  indi- 
cate that  the  miracle  took  place  near  Csesarea  Philippi ;  the  words  of  S. 
Mark  (ix.  29),  KaKtlOev  i^eXOJvres  irapeiropevovTo  5t<z  t?)s  Ta\i\alas,  may 
be  understood  in  the  sense  that  Jesus  descended  Mount  Tabor  in  order  to 
reappear  publicly  in  Galilee  ;  (2)  it  is  not  certain,  though  some  still  assert 
it,  that  a  town  was  built  upon  Tabor  in  the  time  of  the  Christ.  True,  we 
know  that  Antiochus  the  Great  built  a  fortress  there  two  hundred  and 
eighteen  years  before  Jesus  Christ  (Polybius,  v.  70,  6)  ;  but  there  is  notb- 


28       THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

It  was  twilight x  when  Jesus  began  the  ascent.  Three 
Apostles  bore  Him  company,  —  Simon  and  the  two  "  Sons 
of  the  Thunder,"  James  and  John.  As  they  were  drs- 
tined  to  behold  the  Agony  of  the  Lord  it  was  fitting  that 
their  faith  should  be  fortified  beforehand,  and  their  eyes 
illumined  by  the  effulgence  of  the  Godhead.  They  climbed 
the  rocks  wearily,  without  any  presentiment  of  what  they 
were  to  witness,  and  once  on  the  summit,  seeing  the  Mas- 
ter wrapped  in  prayer,2  according  to  his  nightly  custom, 
they  stretched  themselves  along  the  ground  close  at  hand, 
and  here  upon  Mount  Tabor,  as  again  only  a  little  later 
in  Gethsemani,  soon  yielded  to  their  need  of  sleep.3 

And,  lo  !  while  praying  Jesus  is  transfigured  : 4  a  Glory 
all  divine  streams  through  the  veils  of  flesh,  His  face 
shines  like  the  sun,  a  whiteness  as  of  glistening  snow 
envelops  His  garments.  "  Never  fuller  upon  earth  made 
whiteness  like  unto  this,"  says  Saint  Mark.5  At  the  same 
moment  two  figures  appeared  at  either  side;  they  were 
Moses  and  Elias,  one  coming  up  from  the  valley  of  Moab,6 
whence  he  had  vanished  in  the  cloud,  the  other  alighting 
from  his  flame-girt  chariot.  The  Vision  thrilled  the  air 
with  its  glories,  shedding  such  strong  pulsations  of  light 
that  the  Apostles  were  aroused  from  slumber ;  their  eyes 
opened  upon  these  dazzling  rays,  their  ears  caught  the 
words  wherewith  Moses  and  Elias  addressed  the  Christ. 

ing  to  prove  that  two  centuries  later,  after  long  wars  which  changed  the 
face  of  the  entire  country,  this  locality  was  still  inhabited  or  that  the  for- 
tress of  Antiochus  covered  the  whole  Plateau.  Hence  Jesus  might  have 
found  a  lonely  stretch  along  those  hilltops,  or  at  all  events  some  secluded 
spot,  for  it  was  not  until  67  of  our  era  that  Josephus  encircled  Tabor  with 
ramparts. 

1  There  is  every  likelihood  that  it  was  in  the  evening  that  Jesus  ascended 
Tabor,  for  He  went  thither  to  pray  (Luke  ix.  28),  and  for  this  purpose  He 
used  always  to  prefer  the  hours  when  night  draws  on  (Luke  vi.  12  ;  Matt. 
xiv.  2:'»,  etc.).  Furthermore  we  are  told  that  the  Apostles  awakened  in 
the  darkness  (that  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  5iaypr)yopr)<Tai>Tes,  employed 
by  S.  Luke  ix.  32),  and  did  not  descend  the  mountain  until  the  following 
day  :  rrj  e^rjs  yfiepq.  (Luke  ix.  37). 

2  Luke  ix.  28. 

3  Matt.  xxvi.  40,  43. 

4  Matt.  xvii.  2 ;  Luke  ix.  29. 
6  Mark  ix.  2. 

6  Josephus,  Antiquitales,  iv.  8,  48  ;  Deut.  xxxiv.  5,  6". 


JESUS  ON  MOUNT  TABOR.  29 

"They  were  talking  of  His  departure1  from  the  world, 
which  was  to  be  accomplished  at  Jerusalem." 

The  splendid  spectacle  was  as  if  about  to  fade  from  their 
sight.     Rapt  aud  awestruck  Peter  cried  out :  — 

"  Master !  it  is  good  for  us  to  be  here :  if  Thou  wilt,  let 
us  make  three  pavilions  here,  one  for  Thee,  one  for  Moses, 
and  one  for  Elias  ! " 

What  had  he  in  mind  when  uttering  these  words  ?  Did 
the  Apostle's  spirit  dream  of  long  days  of  happiness  like 
this  upon  the  Heaven-kissed  heights,  with  Israel's  yearn- 
ing hopes  all  gratified,  with  Moses  and  Elias  to  add  a  su- 
preme splendor  to  the  new  Kingdom  of  the  Christ  ?  Or  was 
it  as  a  refuge  from  the  pleasures  of  earth  that  lie  was  fain 
to  raise  these  three  leafy  tents  ?  The  Gospel  scarcely 
allows  us  to  indulge  in  any  such  conjectures,  for  it  goes 
on  to  tell  us  how  the  disciples  were,  for  the  time  being, 
bewildered  with  fear,  and  Peter  "  not  knowing  what  he 
was  saying." 

Even  while  the  latter  was  still  speaking  a  radiant  cloud 
encircled  them,  and  from  the  silvery  mist  came  a  Voice 
saying,  — 

"  This  is  My  beloved  Son,  in  Whom  I  am  well  pleased ; 
hear  ye  Him."  2 

Then  they  fell  with  faces  to  the  earth,  and  when,  upon 
recovering  somewhat  from  their  terrors,  they  dared  at  last 
to  lift  their  eyes  they  saw  no  one  but  Jesus.  Still  the 
Apostles  would  not  venture  to  stand  before  Him ;  but  the 
Saviour  stepped  toward  them  and  touched  them,  saying,  — 

"  Arise  and  fear  not !  "  3 

Indeed  it  was  not  to  inspire  their  souls  with  fear  that 
Moses  and  Elias  had  appeared  on  this  mountain  peak ;  it 
was  to  adore  the  Divinity  of  the  Christ ;  for,  in  their  per- 
son, both  the  Law  and  the  Prophets  did  homage  to  Him. 
They  had  entered  within  the  cloud  the  instant  that  the 
Voice  of  the  Father  commanded  man  to  hearken  to  His 

1"E£o8op  (Luke  ix.  31).      "Vocabulum  valde  grave,  quo   continentur 
passio,  crux,  mors,  resurrectio,  ascensio"  (Bengel,  Gnomon,  in  loco). 
2  Matt.  xvii.  5. 
8  Mark  ix.  8  ;  Matt.  xvii.  7. 


30         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MIS  1ST RY  OF  JESUS. 

Son,  and  by  this  departure  proclaimed  that  their  Mission 
was  concluded,  and  that  they  yielded  their  places  to  the 
one  and  only  Muster. 

The  Lord  did  not  expect  that  the  Apostles  would  at 
once  grasp  the  full  meaning  of  the  marvellous  show;  it 
was  enough  for  His  purpose  that  they  should  treasure  the 
memory  of  the  fact  in  order  to  testify  to  its  truth,  later 
on,  in  the  presence  of  the  Church.  And  so,  when  in  the 
cool  of  early  dawn  He  made  the  descent  of  the  mountain- 
side with  them,  He  did  not  explain  the  significance  of  this 
Apparition,  but  rather,  with  grave  words,  bound  them  "  not 
to  reveal  what  they  had  seen  until  the  Son  of  Man  shall 
be  risen  from  the  dead." l 

Then  only,  enlightened  from  on  High,  they  were  to  re- 
veal to  their  brethren  "  that  the  Majesty  of  Jesus  had  been 
unveiled  before  them,  that  before  their  very  eyes  He  had 
received  all  honor  from  God  the  Father,  and  that  a  Voice 
had  come  from  out  that  magnificence  of  glory  proclaiming 
Him  Son  of  the  Most  High."  2 

The  three  Apostles  obeyed,  though  they  had  no  clearer 
insight  into  the  purport  of  the  Saviour's  words  than  they 
had  had  into  the  meaning  of  His  Transfiguration.3 

"  How  will  He  rise  from  among  the  dead  ? "  they  kept 
asking  themselves  ;  and  why  had  Elias  disappeared  again  ? 
The  Scribes  say  that  he  must  go  before  the  Messiah,  and 
once  more  set  all  things  in  order.  Is  not  this  our  Lord 
also  the  Christ  ? 

These  questions  troubled  their  minds  so  much  that  they 
finally  laid  them  before  the  Master.4 

"  It  is  true  that  Elias  must  first  come,  and  that  he  will 
restore  all  things,"  He  answered  them.  "  But  I  tell  you 
that  Elias  is  already  come  and  they  have  not  known  him, 
but  have  dealt  with  him  in  all  things  as  it  pleased  them ; 
in  like  manner  the  Son  of  Man  must  suffer  at  their  hands." 
Then  he  explained  the  Oracle  of  Malachy 5  so  clearly  to 
them  that  they  were  enabled  to  distinguish  between  the 
two  Forerunners  whom  the  Scribes  had  confounded.    There 

i  Mark  ix.  8.  2  2  Peter  i.  1G-18.  »  Mark  ix.  10. 

4  Matt.  xvii.  10-13.  6  Matt.  iv.  5. 


JESUS  ON  MOUNT  TABOR.  31 

was  that  Elias  of  old,  whose  return  will  betoken  the  last 
days  of  the  world ;  while  the  other  Elias,  the  first  Herald 
of  the  Christ,  is  John  the  Baptist. 

As  they  were  nearing  the  foot  of  the  mountain  Jesus 
perceived  the  rest  of  His  disciples  surrounded  by  a  great 
concourse  of  people.1  They  had  been  endeavoring  to  heal 
a  possessed  youth,  but  their  efforts  had  been  of  no  avail, 
and  the  Scribes,  gloating  over  their  discomfiture,  were 
pushing  the  argument  against  them  in  gleeful  triumph, 
when  of  a  sudden  the  multitude  became  aware  of  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Lord.  Apparently  His  countenance  still 
burned  with  the  afterglow  of  its  recent  splendor,  for,  after 
a  momentary  thrill  of  awe,  with  one  accord  the  people 
flocked  about  Him  to  give  Him  greeting. 

"  About  what  were  you  disputing  together  ? "  He  in- 
quired. 

The  Scribes'  faces  had  fallen ;  the  disciples  were  too 
much  abashed  to  tell  of  their  failure ;  but  a  man's  voice 
arose  from  the  midst  of  the  by-standers  :  — 

"  Master,"  it  said,  "  I  brought  you  my  son,  who  is  pos- 
sessed by  a  dumb  Spirit ;  wherever  it  happens  to  seize 
him  it  throws  him  down  upon  the  earth,  and  the  child 
foams  at  the  mouth,  grinds  his  teeth,  and  so  pines  away. 
I  have  begged  your  disciples  to  drive  it  out,  and  they 
were  not  able ;  but  do  you,  I  beseech  you,  only  look  at 
him,  for  he  is  my  only  child."2  And  pushing  his  way 
through  the  by-standers  he  flung  himself  at  the  Saviour's 
feet.3 

In  a  glance  Jesus  saw  all  the  eager  faces  surrounding 
the  poor  suppliant ;  saw  among  them  His  relentless  foes ; 
saw  a  crowd  more  curious  than  compassionate ;  above  all, 
saw  that  His  own  Apostles  were  still  faint-hearted  and 
wavering  in  their  faith. 

This  spectacle  wrung  from  His  heavy  heart  the  cry,4  — 

"Unbelieving  and  depraved  race  that  you  are,  how  long 
shall  I  be  with  you  ?  how  long  shall  I  suffer  you  ? " 

Then  turning  to  the  man  who  had  invoked  His  help : 
"  Bring  your  child  here,"  He  said. 

*  Mark  ix.  13.       2  Luke  ix.  38.       3  Matt.  xvii.  14.       i  Luke  ix.  41. 


32         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

The  boy  was  brought;  hardly  had  he  seen  Jesus  when, 
seized  with  the  frenzy,  he  was  dashed  down  to  the  ground, 
and  writhed  in  foaming  delirium.1  Thereupon  the  Lord 
asked  the  father:2  — 

"  For  how  long  a  time  has  this  been  going  on  ? " 

"From  his  infancy,"  responded  the  latter;  "and  often- 
times the  .Spirit  has  thrown  him  into  the  fire  and  into  the 
water  in  order  to  destroy  him.  If  you  can  do  anything, 
come  to  our  aid,  —  have  pity  upon  us  ! " 

"  If  you  can  believe,"  replied  Jesus,  "  everything  is  pos- 
sible to  him  who  believes." 

Disquieted  by  these  words  the  man  began  to  fear  lest 
he  had  shown  too  little  confidence  in  the  Master,  and  in 
his  distress  the  tears  came,  as  he  cried,  half-weeping, — 

"  Lord,  I  believe  ;  help  Thou  mine  unbelief." 

The  Saviour,  noting  how  the  curious  folk  were  pressing 
around  Him,  turned  toward  the  little  lad  lying  in  agony  at 
His  feet. 

"  Deaf  and  dumb  Spirit,"  He  said,  "  I  command  thee, 
come  from  out  this  child,  and  never  more  reenter  him." 

The  demon,  raising  up  the  poor  possessed  body,  wracked 
it  once  more,  fiercely,  then  came  forth  with  a  great  cry. 
Like  one  stunned  the  lad  fell  back  to  the  ground ;  but  no 
foam  about  his  lips,  with  no  convulsion  in  his  limbs. 

"  He  is  dead  !  "  exclaimed  the  witnesses  of  this  prodigy. 

But  Jesus  took  him  by  the  hand,  raised  him  up,  and  the 
child,  now  whole  and  sound,  stood  erect  before  them. 

After  this  Jesus  lost  no  time  in  seeking  shelter  from  the 
curious  within  the  walls  of  some  dwelling;3  the  Apostles 
accompanying  Him  felt  shame  for  their  public  failure,  and 
cast  about  for  something  to  account  for  it.  At  the  time 
when  the  Master  first  gave  them  their  Mission,  had  He 
not  also  endowed  them  with  all  power  over  the  devils  ? 
Why  was  it,  then,  that  they  had  been  unable  to  cast  out 
this  one  just  now  ? 

When  questioned  in  secret  He  replied  that  the  cause 
was  their  own  unbelief ;  for  the  prediction  of  His  approach- 
ing death  had  destroyed  their  faith  to  such  a  degree  that 

1  Mark  ix.  19.  2  Mark  ix.  21-24.  8  Mark  ix.  27. 


THE  RETURN  TO   CAPHARNAUM.  33 

Jesus  seems  to  be  at  a  loss  for  some  object  small  enough 
to  be  likened  to  the  poor  residue  of  their  belief  in  Him.1 

"  If  you  had  faith  as  great  as  a  grain  of  mustard  you 
should  say  to  this  mountain :  Move  hence  to  yonder  spot ! 
and  it  would  be  removed,  and  nothing  shall  be  impossible 
to  you."  2 

But  in 'addition  to  this  first  cause  of  their  powerlessness 
He  told  them  that  their  souls  were  still  far  from  seeking 
that  heavenly  help  which  alone  can  prevail  over  the  hosts 
of  Hell ;  and  that  such  dominion  is  bestowed  only  upon 
those  who,  with  hearts  cleansed  by  prayer  and  fasting,  rise 
above  this  body  of  flesh.3 

Jesus  withdrew  from  Tabor  at  once,  taking  the  road  to 
Capharnaum,  careful  that  no  one  along  the  journey  should 
know  of  His  presence.4  Nevertheless  He  continued  His 
instructions  to  the  disciples,  telling  them  :  "  The  Son  of 
man  shall  be  delivered  into  the  hands  of  men,  and  they 
shall  kill  Him,  and  after  having  been  put  to  death  He  shall 
rise  again  the  third  day."  5  "  But  the  Apostles  understood 
nothing  of  what  He  told  them  on  this  subject ;  His  words 
seemed,  as  it  were,  veiled  to  them ; "  they  indeed  dreaded 
to  be  forewarned  of  the  coming  evil,  and  so  followed  their 
Master  in  sadness,  "  not  venturing  to  question  him."  6 


II.    The  Return  to  Capharnaum. 

Matt.  xvii.  23-26  ;  xviii.  1-35 ;  Mark.  ix.  32-49  ;  Luke  ix.  46-50. 

This  time  the  reentrance  of  Jesus  into  Capharnaum  was 
very  different  from  those  home-comings  of  former  days: 
the  little  band  of  companions  which  was  now  left  to  Him 

1  Matt.  xvii.  19. 

2  To  remove  mountains  was  an  hyperbole  in  familiar  use  among  the 
Jews,  to  express  any  great  difficulty  which  was  to  be  surmounted  (Light- 
foot,  Horce  Hebralcce,  in  Matt.  xxi.  21).  These  words  of  Jesus  declare  the 
power  of  Faith,  howsoever  weak  it  may  be  supposed  to  be. 

3  Mark  ix.  28,  29. 

4  Mark  ix.  30-32. 

5  Luke  ix.  45. 

6  Mark  ix.  31. 

VOL.  II.  —  3 


o4        THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

traversed  the  streets  almost  unnoticed  by  the  indifferent 
passers-by.  Only  the  tax-gatherers  made  after  them  and 
asked  Peter :  — 

"  Does  n't  your  Master  pay  the  didrachma  V'1 

This  tribute  was  the  ransom  which  every  son  of  Israel 
owed  to  Jehovah  as  the  "  Price  of  his  Soul."2  Ordinarily 
it  was  taken  up  in  the  month  of  March.3  That  it  was  not 
demanded  until  autumn  in  this  instance  was  because  Jesus 
had  been  absent  from  Judea  for  some  six  months ;  or  it 
may  be  that,  since  He  had  been  regarded  hitherto  as,  by 
rank,  a  Doctor,  He  was  considered  exempt  from  this  charge 
laid  upon  the  people.4 

But  now  the  Apostle,  sore  pressed  for  an  answer  by 
the  collectors,  assured  them  that  the  tax  should  be  paid ; 
yet,  almost  immediately,  he  realized  that  he  had  been 
somewhat  rash  in  pledging  his  Master's  word  in  this  off- 
hand manner,  and  his  embarrassment  was  very  evident  as 
he  followed  Him  "  into  the  house."  Jesus  did  not  wait 
for  Peter  to  unburden  his  mind. 

"  Simon,"  He  said  to  him,  "  how  does  this  appear  to 
your  mind  ?  Of  whom  do  the  kings  of  the  earth  exact 
tribute  ?     Of  their  own  children,  or  of  foreigners  ? " 

"Of  foreigners,"  was  Peter's  reply. 

"  Then  the  children  are  free,"  responded  Jesus. 

In  this  way  He  chose  to  remind  the  Apostle,  who  had 
been  a  witness  of  His  Glory  on  Tabor,  that  the  Christ, 
the  Son  of  God,  was  by  this  same  title  freed  from  the 
necessity  of  human  laws,  and  thus  exempt  from  the 
didrachma,  the  ransom  of  sinners. 

"  Nevertheless,"  He  added,  "  that  we  may  not  give  scan- 

1  Matt.  xvii.  23-26.  The  two  drachmas,  or  the  half-shekel,  were  worth 
about  thirty  cents  in  our  money  (Saigey,  Traite'de  metrologie,  p.  55,  and 
Kitto,  Gyclopccdia :  Drachm).  Every  Jew,  rich  or  poor,  whether  living 
in  Juclea  or  in  a  foreign  land  must  pay  this  sum.  It  was  productive  of  con- 
siderable funds,  which  being  faithfully  carried  to  Jerusalem  were  used  in 
the  service  of  the  Temple  ( Lightfoot,  Horcc  Hcbraicce,  in  Matt.  xvii.  24). 
It  was  a  usage  dating  from  the  remotest  time,  being  founded  upon  a  precept 
in  Exodus  (xxx.  11-16). 

2  Exod.  xxx.  12. 

8  Shekalim,  i.  f.  7. 
4  Pirkc  Aboth,  iv.  5. 


THE  RETURN  TO   CAPHARNAUM.  35 

dal  to  any  one,  go  to  the  lake  and  cast  a  hook.  The  first 
fish  which  you  shall  draw  from  the  water,  take  it  and  open 
its  mouth.  There  you  will  find  a  stater ; 1  this  you  will 
take,  and  give  it  to  him,  for  Me  and  for  you." 

Jesus,  the  Son  of  Man,  would  obey  the  laws  and  pay  the 
tribute  ;  but  He  paid  it  even  as  God,  by  a  miracle. 

The  Gospel  does  not  tell  us  in  whose  dwelling  this  reply 
was  uttered,  but  it  gives  us  to  understand  that  Jesus  had 
accepted  the  hospitality  of  some  faithful  family,  for  on  this 
occasion  we  see  a  young  child  close  by  His  side.2  Very 
graciously  did  the  Master  greet  the  timid  approach  of  such 
little  ones,  whose  gentle  frankness  always  gladdened  His 
heart ;  and  now  He  drew  this  baby  nearer  to  Him,  in  order 
to  enforce  another  lesson  upon  the  minds  of  His  Apostles. 

"  What  were  you  discussing  on  the  road  ? "  He  asked 
them.3 

This  abrupt  question  disconcerted  them,  for,  seeing  the 
Master  walking  at  some  distance  ahead  of  them,  "  they  had 
been  disputing  among  themselves  as  to  which  one  of  their 
number  was  to  be  considered  the  greatest."  Probably  the 
preference  shown  to  the  three  companions  of  Jesus  upon 
Tabor  had  excited  some  jealousies  and  given  rise  to  this 
wrangle.  Crestfallen  at  finding  themselves  detected,  all 
stood  before  Him  without  a  word. 

The  Master  sat  down  and  gathered  the  Twelve  around 
Him.  "  If  any  one  wishes  to  be  the  first,"  He  said  to  them, 
"  let  him  be  the  least  and  the  servant  of  all."  And  He  took 
up  the  child,  folded  it  in  His  arms,  then,  still  holding  it, 
He  told  the  Apostles  that  this  was  to  be  their  model.4 

"Whoever,"  He  said,  "receives  a  little  child  like  this 
one  before  you,  in  My  Name,  receives  Me,  and  he  who 
entertaineth  Me  receiveth  not  Me  but  Him  that  sent  Me." 

The  Lord  could  not  bestow  higher  praise  upon  the  inno- 
cence of  little  children  than  this,  for  He  described  Himself 

1  The  Stater  was  worth  four  drachmas  (ahout  sixty  cents)  and  made  up 
the  two  didrachmas  which  the  tax-gatherer  had  demanded  of  Jesus  and  His 
Apostles. 

2  Mark  ix.  36. 

8  Mark  ix.  32-37- 
1  Matt,  xviii.  5. 


36         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

as  of  their  nature,  and  commanded  that  they  be  entertained 
even  as  Himself,  even  as  God,  His  Father. 

Yet  the  disciples  did  not  realize  the  full  force  of  His 
words.1  John  himself,  usually  more  clear-sighted  than  the 
rest,  now  only  gathered  that  Jesus  was  speaking  of  those 
who  present  themselves  in  His  Name.  At  once  he  remem- 
bered that  recently  the  Twelve  had  forbidden  a  man  to 
drive  out  devils  in  the  Name  of  the  Christ,  because  this 
man  was  not  one  of  them,  and  here  he  broke  in  upon  the 
Master,  desiring  to  know  whether  they  hud  done  rightly. 

"  Do  not  forbid  him,"  Jesus  replied ;  "  for  there  is  no  one 
who,  after  he  has  worked  a  miracle  in  My  Name,  can  at 
once  speak  ill  of  Me  thereafter;  he  who- is  not  against  you 
is  for  you."2 

Then  He  reverted  to  His  first  thought,  to  the  young  child 
still  nestling  in  His  arms,  —  to  those  little  ones  "  whose 
Angels  forever  behold  the  face  of  His  Father  Who  is  in 
Heaven."  3 

"  If  any  one,"  He  said,  "  shall  scandalize  one  of  these 
children  who  believe  in  Me,  it  were  better  for  him  that  a 
mill-stone  4  should  be  hung  about  his  neck  and  that  he  be 
plunged  in  the  depths  of  the  sea.  Woe  to  the  world  be- 
cause of  its  scandals  !  It  must  needs  be  that  scandals  come, 
but  woe  to  the  man  by  whom  the  scandal  comes ! "  5 

With  words  like  these  Jesus  talked  to  them  in  this  house 
at  Capharnaum  ;  the  conversation  lasted  much  longer  than 
this;  for  the  Master  was  no  longer,  as  of  old,  thronged  upon 
by  crowds  eager  to  hear  His  every  word :  all  alone  with  His 

1  Mark  ix.  37-40. 

2  This  saying  of  the  Christ  would  seem  to  contradict  the  words  reported 
by  S.  Matthew  :  "  He  who  is  not  with  Me  is  against  Me."  But  "  is  there 
any  one  who,  in  the  course  of  a  busy  life,  has  not  experienced  the  fact  that, 
according  to  the  circumstances  and  the  different  characters  involved,  a  man 
who  refrains  from  cooperating  ami  holds  aloof  will,  by  so  doing,  sometimes 
be  lending  you  his  countenance  and  support,  at  other  times,  on  the  con- 
trary, injures  and  impedes  your  efforts  ?"  (Gnizot,  Meditations  sur  I'essence 
de  la  religion  chretienne,  p.  270.) 

8  Matt,  xviii.  10. 

4  MuXoj  ovLKbs  :  the  uppermost  millstone,  of  a  conical  shape,  which  re- 
volves upon  the  lower  stationary  stone.  It  was  so  heavy  that  often  an  ass 
was  used  to  set  it  in  motion. 

6  Matt,  xviii.  6,  7. 


THE  RETURN  TO   CAPIIARNAUM.  37 

disciples,  He  could  adapt  His  words  to  their  needs.  So  it 
was  that  He  made  them  glimpse  the  terrors  of  Hell,  adjur- 
ing them  to  sacrifice  everything,  were  it  their  limbs,  or 
their  sight,  in  order  to  escape  "  that  Gehenna  of  fire,  where 
the  worm  gnaweth  and  dieth  not,  where  the  flame  burnetii 
and  is  not  quenched."  1  And  then  He  alluded  to  an  alto- 
gether different  fire,  the  flame  of  love,  which,  once  lighted, 
dues  but  purify  all  things  which  it  touches.2  But  among 
all  the  conversations  of  that  day,  there  is  none  more  mem- 
orable or  momentous  than  their  talk  about  the  rules 
which  He  gave  His  disciples  for  the  adjustment  of  their 
differences. 

The  Christ  has  decreed  that  the  Church  is  to  be  the  Arbi- 
trator for  her  children.3     It  is  to  her  that  it  belongs  to  in- 

1  These  figures  are  borrowed  from  the  Prophet  Isaiah:  "  Their  worm 
shall  not  die,  and  their  flame  shall  not  be  quenched,  and  they  shall  be  a 
thing  loathsome  and  abhorred  in  the  eyes  of  all  flesh  "  (Is.  lxvi.  24).  In 
S.  Mark  (ix.  43,  45,  47),  the  Master  repeats  these  mournful  words  three 
separate  times,  in  order  to  fill  His  Apostles'  souls  with  a  fear  of  the  Judg- 
ments of  God. 

2  Here  we  are  speaking  of  the  text  of  S.  Mark  (ix.  48)  :  "All  must  be 
salted  with  fire,  even  as  every  victim  must  be  salted  with  salt.  Salt  is 
good  ;  but  if  it  has  lost  its  saltness,  wherewith  will  you  season  it  ?  Have 
salt  in  yourselves  and  preserve  peace  with  one  another."  This  obscure 
passage  has  given  rise  to  many  and  various  comments.  Some  refer  the 
words  :  "  All  shall  be  salted  with  fire  "  to  the  damned,  of  whom  Jesus  had 
been  speaking;  they  shall  be  salted, — meaning  that  they  shall  be  pre- 
served everlastingly  in  avenging  flames.  Others  apply  these  words  to  all 
Christians  :  "  Every  one  shall  be  salted  by  the  fire,"  or  in  other  words,  all 
shall  pass  through  either  the  flames  of  Hell  or  the  fires  of  tribulation, 
which  shall  purify  them  as  the  salt  does  the  flesh  of  the  victims.  Slightly 
modified  the  latter  interpretation  gives  a  very  reasonable  construction  of 
the  sacred  text.  Indeed  it  is  enough  to  read  the  rest  of  the  evangelical 
record  to  feel  convinced  that  after  having  spoken  of  the  damned,  Jesus 
passes  to  another  subject,  and  now,  with  the  flames  of  Hell,  contrasts  the 
fire  which  hums  not  to  destroy,  but  to  purify  the  soul.  This  fire  is  that  of 
the  sacrifices,  the  symbol  and  foretokening  of  the  Presence  of  Jehovah. 
No  victim  was  offered  to  Him  until  it  was  covered  with  salt,  in  order  to 
preserve  it  from  corruption  (Lev.  ii.  13),  and  the  flame  perfected  the  puri- 
fication of  the  host  by  consuming  it.  But  for  the  Apostles,  this  Salt  of  the 
Holocaust  was  henceforth  unnecessary  ;  in  their  union  with  God,  Who  is 
"a  consuming  fire"  (Dent.  iv.  24),  they  would  find  their  perfect  purifica- 
tion. All  must  be  salted  with  fire,  even  as  every  victim  is  salted  with  salt. 
Tims,  then,  let  their  charity  he  warm  and  glQwing,  let  it  be  ever  like  a 
savory  salt,  fervid,  not  seasonless,  and  then  they  shall  have  peace  one 
with  another. 

3  Matt,  xviii.  15-20. 


38         THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

terpret  the  Moral  Law,  to  determine  the  rights  and  the 
duties  of  her  children,  and  to  disown  the  unruly,  treating 
them  as  the  Jews  treated  Pagans  and  publicans.  Indeed 
Jesus  had  given  her  the  power  of  binding  and  of  loosing 
upon  earth,  and  had  promised  her  His  never-failing  assist- 
ance, not  simply  for  the  instructing  and  sanctifying  of  men's 
souls,  but  that  they  might  be  maintained  in  true  obedience. 
Let  but  two  or  three  persons  invested  with  the  authority  of 
the  Church  be  gathered  together  in  the  Name  of  the  Christ, 
"  the  Father  Who  is  in  Heaven  will  grant  them  all  that 
they  shall  ask,  and  Jesus  Himself  will  be  in  the  midst  of 
them." 

Peter  hearing  these  first  rules  of  the  Christian  Law  pro- 
nounced, wished  that  the  Master  would  enunciate  them 
with  more  precision.1 

"  Lord,"  he  asked,  "  if  my  brother  sin  against  me,  how 
many  times  shall  I  forgive  him  ?  As  much  as  seven 
times  ? " 

The  Apostle  believed  that  he  was  going  to  great  lengths 
in  his  indulgent  mercy,  since  the  Eabbis  taught  that  to 
pardon  three  times  was  the  height  of  perfection ; 2  but 
under  the  gracious  sway. of  the  Christ,  forgiveness,  like 
love,  must  be  infinite. 

"  I  do  not  say  :  Until  seven  times,"  answered  the  Lord  ; 
"but:  Until  seventy  times  seven  times."3  And  to  make 
it  better  understood  how  rigorously  His  law  of  loving- 
kindness  must  bind  our  actions,  He  set  before  the  Apos- 
tles' eyes  one  of  those  Oriental  courts  where  the  lightest 
fancy  of  their  monarch  can,  in  an  instant,  raise  up  or 
demolish  the  most  splendid  fortunes. 

A  king,  He  told  them,4  set  about  procuring  a  reckoning 

i  Matt,  xviii.  21-22. 

2  "  Homini  in  alterutrum  peccanti  semel  remittunt,  secundo  remittunt, 
tertio  remittunt,  quarto  non  remittunt"  (Ioma,  f.  86,  2).  They  based  this 
Rule  upon  certain  obscure  passages  in  the  old  Testament,  and  in  particu- 
lar, on  these  words  of  Amos  :  "After  the  crimes  which  Gaza  has  com- 
mitted for  these  three  and  four  times,  I  will  not  change  the  sentence  which 
I  have  uttered  against  it"  (Amos,  i.  6). 

8  That  is  to  say  (according  to  the  usage  of  Hebraic  speech),  indefinitely 
(Gen.  iv.  24,  etc.). 

*  Matt,  xviii.  23-25. 


THE  RETURN  TO   CAPHARNAUM.  39 

from  his  ministers ;  then  one  of  them  was  brought  before 
him,  as  powerful  a  personage  as  any  of  their  number,  who 
owed  his  sovereign  ten  thousand  talents.1  He  succeeded  in 
winning  the  pity  of  his  lord,  who  forbore  to  sell  him  upon 
the  spot,  him  and  his  wife  and  his  children.  Yet,  even 
before  he  had  passed  out  from  under  the  palace  gates 
a  free  man,  he  flung  himself  upon  one  of  his  com- 
rades who  owed  him  a  trifling  matter, —  only  one  hun- 
dred denarii.2  Clutching  him  by  the  throat,  half-strangling 
him  he  repeated :  — 

"  Hand  over  what  you  owe  me  ! " 

The  wretched  fellow  fell  at  his  feet,  begging  him :  "  Only 
have  patience,  and  I  will  pay  you  all." 

But  the  other  would  hearken  to  nothing,  and  dragged 
him  to  prison  until  such  time  as  he  should  pay  the  whole. 
The  king,  having  knowledge  of  all  this,  bade  them  call  the 
officer  once  more. 

"  Wicked  servant,"  he  said  to  him,  "  at  your  prayer  I  for- 
gave you  your  debt ;  should  you  not  have  had  pity  upon 
your  comrade  as  I  have  had  pity  upon  you  ? "  And,  in  his 
wrath,  he  delivered  him  to  the  torturers.3 

"  So,  also  shall  My  heavenly  Father  treat  you,"  concluded 
Jesus,  "  if  you  do  not,  each  one  of  you,  forgive  your  brother 
from  the  bottom  of  your  heart." 

So,  then,  Charity,  much  more  than  Justice,  should  be  the 
foundation  of  Christian  righteousness,  or  rather  one  must 
be  blended  with  the  other !     "  Mercy  and  truth  are  met 

1  About  18f  millions  in  our  money.  In  the  time  of  Jesus,  the  talent 
was  worth  about  $"!875  (see  Saigey,  Traits de  metrologic).  Evidently  the 
official  here  in  question  was  one  of  those  satraps  who  collected  the  revenues 
of  entire  provinces  in  the  name  of  their  king. 

2  About  $15.50,  the  denarius  being  worth  about  154  cents  (Kitto,  Cyclo- 
ptedia  :  Dexarius  ;  Saigey,  p.  75). 

3  This  term  recalls  the  tortures  inflicted  upon  debtors,  in  the  hope  that 
their  sufferings  might  make  them  disclose  their  hidden  stores,  or  that  com- 
passion would  move  their  relatives  to  pay  the  debt.  Though  the  Jewish 
Law  showed  some  clemency  for  the  insolvent  Israelite,  no  such  sentiment 
ever  actuated  Pagan  law-makers.  Without  mentioning  the  East,  where 
the  debtor  became  the  chattel  of  the  creditor  and  was  abandoned  to  his 
mercy,  we  find  that  at  Rome  his  lot  was  fixed  by  the  law  of  the  Twelve 
Tables  :  he  could  be  sold  as  a  slave,  loaded  with  chains,  mutilated  (Titus 
Livy,  Historice,  ii.  23). 


40        TH1IU)  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  <>F  JESUS. 

together,  righteousness  and  peace  have  kissed  each  other," 1 
even  as  two  sisters. 

"  If  your  brother  has  sinned  against  you,"  said  the  Lord 
once  again,2  "  do  not  wait  for  him  to  be  sorry ;  be  the  first 
to  go  to  him  and  to  chide  him,  you  and  he  alone  together. 
If  he  listens  to  you,  you  will  have  gained  your  brother ;  if 
he  does  not  listen  to  you,  try  again,  taking  two  or  three 
persons  with  you,  so  that  it  may  be  decided  by  the  evidence 
of  two  or  three  witnesses.3  If  he  will  not  hearken  to  them, 
tell  the  Church," — for  her  to  settle  all  differences,  even  as  a 
mother  does  among  her  little  ones,  reviving  sweet  accord 
in  estranged  and  angry  hearts,  oftentimes  rebuking  us  but 
always  loving,  —  ay,  most  loving  when  she  hurts  us,  that 
so  she  may  bring  back  health  and  salvation  to  our  souls. 

1  Ps.  lxxxiv.  11. 

2  Matt,  xviii.  15-17. 

8  In  these  rules  given  by  Jesus  there  is  much  to  remind  us  of  the  disci- 
pline of  the  Synagogue  :  "  Quicumque  peccat  in  fratrem  suum  necesse  habet 
ut  ei  dicat :  In  te  peccavi.  Si  audiat,  bene  :  si  non,  adducat  alios  et  placet 
eum  coram  iis.  Si  forsan  morietur,  placet  eum  ad  sepulchrum  suum  et 
dicat :  In  te  peccavi"  (Ioma,  lxxxvii.  1). 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  FEAST  OF  THE  TABERNACLES. 

I.    Jesus  goes  up  privately  to  Jerusalem. 

John  vii.  1-10  ;  Luke  ix.  51-62  ;  Matt.  viii.  19-22. 

Autumn  1  had  come  upon  the  land,  and  in  every  direc- 
tion caravans  were  forming  for  the  journey  Jerusalemward, 
for  it  was  the  season  for  the  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles,2  the 
gladdest  of  all  Israel's  solemnities.  As  it  was  instituted  to 
be  a  memorial  of  their  march  through  the  wilderness,  it 
lasted  seven  days,  and  during  that  time  the  whole  people 
lived  under  leafy  shelters,  woven  of  boughs,  just  as  their 
fathers  had  sojourned  in  tents.3  The  olive,  the  pine,  the  myr- 

1  As  regards  the  order  in  which  we  have  disposed  the  events  occurring 
between  the  time  of  the  Transfiguration  and  the  last  journey  that  Jesus 
made,  refer  to  Appendix  IX. 

2  John  vii.  2. 

8  Whence  its  name,  Scenopegia,  "The  Tent-Kaising"  (aKrjvq,  Trtftviu)  ; 
in  Hebrew,  "The  Feast  of  the  Tents"  (JVDDH  Jn).  It  also  bore  the 
name  of  "Harvest  Festival,"  ^PXH  Jn  (Exod.  xxiii.  16),  because  it 
was  celebrated  when  all  the  fruits  of  the  earth  had  been  gathered 
in.  It  lasted  from  the  15th  to  the  22d  of  Tishri  (the  last  days  of  Septem- 
ber), and  marked  the  end  of  the  civil  year,  which  began  once  more  with 
the  month  of  October  (Lev.  xxiii.  39  ;  Deut.  xvi.  13-15).  The  object  of 
this  festival  was  to  give  thanks  to  God  for  the  harvest,  and  to  praise  that 
signal  mercy  whereby  He  had  established  the  Jews,  hitherto  a  nomad 
horde,  within  a  land  flowing  with  milk  and  honey.  The  memory  of  that 
momentous  event  gave  this  Feast  a  splendor  almost  equal  to  that  of  the 
Passover  Josephus  and  Philo  did  not  hesitate  to  call  it  the  greatest  and 
holiest  ot  festivals.  The  holocausts  were  more  numerous  than  at  any  other 
time,  hence,  during  the  seven  days  solemnity,  the  twenty-four  classes  of 
the  priesthood  were  all  present,  and  filled  their  various  functions  in  the 
Temple  (Soucca,  v.  6). 


42         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

tie,  and  the  palm  trees  were  now  stripped  of  their  branches ; 
little  pavilions  of  green  foliage  were  raised  all  along  the 
streets,  through  the  squares,  upon  the  level  house-tops,  and 
above  the  city  ramparts ;  and  for  the  space  of  one  week 
Jerusalem  bore  much  the  appearance  of  a  forest  of  verdure.1 
On  all  sides  there  was  nothing  to  be  heard  but  songs  of  joy- 
answering  the  blare  of  trumpets  which  reechoed  from  the 
terraces  of  the  Temple,  and  every  Jew,  in  token  of  rejoic- 
ing, bore  either  a  branch  of  palm  or  some  other  fresh  bough, 
laden  with  citrons  2  or  peaches,  or  any  rich  fruitage  of  the 
season.  The  gayety  was  the  more  heartfelt  and  real,  be- 
cause their  great  Day  of  Expiation  3  immediately  preceded 
the  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles,  and  consequently  they  con- 
sidered themselves  purified  and  freed  from  sin. 

The  kinsfolk  of  the  Lord  were  on  the  eve  of  their  de- 
parture from  Capharnamn.  to  go  up  to  this  solemnity. 
Some  of  their  household  bethought  themselves  to  seek  Him 
out;  with  thoughts  and  views  of  Him  just  as  low  and 
grovelling  as  when  formerly  they  treated  Him  like  a 
madman,4  so  now  they  had  nothing  but  complaints  and 
reproaches  upon  their  lips. 

'Why  so  much  mystery;  why  keep  himself  concealed  in 
this  way,  so  discouraging  to  his  would-be  partisans  ?  How 
many  Jews  about  Jerusalem  were  ready  to  receive  him 
well,  from  the  first,  if  he  had  only  been  willing  to  make 
himself  plainly  understood  ! ' 

"  Leave  this  place,"  was  the  family-advice,5  "  and  go  into 

1  2  Esdras  viii.  15.  So  nowadays,  around  the  source  of  the  Jordan,  the 
inhabitants  of  Banias  erect  bowers  of" greenwood  upon  the  roofs  of  their 
houses,  and  there  they  sleep  during  the  summer. 

2  Lev.  xxiii.  40.  "The fruits  of  the  most  beautiful  tree,"  Tin  y£  ^p  ; 
that  is,  the  citron,  according  to  the  majority  of  interpreters  (Onkelos,  Pes- 
hito,  etc.)  ;  others  say  it  refers  to  the  peach  (see  Josephus,  Antiquitates, 
iii.  10,  4). 

3  This  Feast  of  Expiation  took  place  upon  the  10th  of  Tishri,  five  days 
before  the  solemnity  of  the  Tabernacles.  The  whole  people  fasted  on  that 
day,  and  among  the  sacrifices  the  High -Priest  offered  two  he-goats  ;  one  of 
these,  as  being  burdened  with  the  sins  of  Israel,  was  driven  forth  into  the 
desert  (Lev.  xvi.,  xxiii.  26-32  ;  Num.  xxix.  7-11). 

*  Mark  iii.  21. 
8  John  viii.  3-5. 


JESUS   GOES   UP  PRIVATELY  TO  JERUSALEM.      43 

Judea,  so  that  your  disciples  may  see  the  works  which  you 
do ;  for  nobody  does  his  actions  in  secret,  when  he  wishes 
to  show  himself  in  public ;  since  you  are  doing  these  things, 
manifest  yourself  to  the  world." 

Such  words  as  these  were  only  another  justification  of 
the  Evangelist's  sad  reflection :  "  Even  His  brethren 1  did 
not  believe  in  Him." 

Jesus  showed  no  surprise. 

"My  time  is  not  come  as  yet,"  He  said,  quietly  ;2  "but 
your  time  is  always  ready,  for  the  world  cannot  hate  you  ; 
but  Me  it  hates,  because  I  bear  witness  that  its  works  are 
evil.  Do  you  go  up  to  this  feast ;  as  for  Me,  I  do  not  now 
go  thither  because  My  time  is  not  yet  accomplished." 3 

There  was  good  reason  for  the  Lord's  speaking  so  ob- 
scurely, since  it  was  important  that  Jerusalem  should  be 
unaware  of  His  approaching  visit :  the  Sanhedrin  would 
certainly  have  profited  by  the  interval  to  arouse  the  popu- 
lace and  prepare  some  pitfall  against  His  coming.  So  He 
left  His  kindred  to  depart  without  Him,  and  while  the 
caravans  were  filling  the  routes  which  keep  along  the  high- 
way of  the  Jordan,  He  with  His  Apostles  turned  aside 
toward  Samaria,  taking  that  road  up  to  the  Holy  City. 

His  farewell  was  a  sorrowful  one,  for  He  was  taking 
leave  of  the  Galilee  He  loved  to  go  to  Jerusalem,  where 
only  ingratitude  and  persecution  awaited  Him.  All  this 
Jesus  knew  beforehand ;  evermore  His  gaze  rested  on  the 
last  six  months  of  His  Ministry  as  they  stretched  out  inter- 
minably before  His  eyes :  His  departure  from  this  world,4 

1  The  brethren,  or,  as  we  have  frequently  explained,  the  cousins  of  the 
Lord.  These  words  refer  to  the  sons  of  Alpheus,  but  not  to  James  and 
Jude,  because  only  a  little  later  we  see  them  in  company  with  the  other 
Apostles  following  the  Christ  to  Jerusalem. 

2  John  vii.  6-10. 

3  Whether,  with  the  Syriac  Version  of  Cureton  and  the  Alexandrian 
Manuscript,  we  adopt  the  reading  oi/K,  or  whether  we  prefer  the  more  intel- 
ligible reading  oi'nrw,  which  we  find  in  the  Manuscript  of  the  Vatican  and 
the  Vulgate,  the  purpose  of  Jesus  is  none  the  less  evident :  under  these 
vague  terms  He  wished  to  indicate  that  as  yet  the  time  for  Him  to  go  up 
to  Jerusalem  was  not  come. 

4 'AraX^eus  (Luke  ix.  51)  .  .  .  curb  rrjs  777s  eh  ovpavSv,  as  Euthymius 
exp^ins  it,  and  as  the  meaning  ordinarily  given  this  word  in  the  New 
Testament  demands  (Mark  xvi.  19  ;  Acts  i.  2). 


44        THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

the  Cross,  and  the  tomb.  Wherefore  (to  use  S.  Luke's 
expression),  "He  steadfastly  set  His  face  to  go  up  to 
Jerusalem." 

Following  the  road  across  the  plain  of  Esdralon,  they 
reached  the  hill-country  which  forms  the  northern  frontier 
of  Samaria.  At  its  base  lies  the  little  town  of  En-Gannim, 
"  The  Fountain  of  the  Gardens."  It  was  the  first  Samaritan 
village  they  encountered ;  and  Jesus  sent  some  of  His  dis- 
ciples on  ahead  to  prepare  lodgings  for  them.1  James  and 
John,  charged  with  this  duty,  set  out  confidently  enough ; 
for  remembering  the  crowds  which  hastened  to  meet  Jesus 
at  Jacob's  Well  they  promised  themselves  a  kindly  wel- 
come. But  while  Israel's  festivals  were  going  on,  the  ani- 
mosity of  the  Samaritans  knew  no  bounds  ;  now  "  inasmuch 
as  the  travellers  had  turned  their  faces  toward  Jerusalem," 
every  door  was  closed  against  them,  and  they  returned  with- 
out having  found  either  shelter  or  food.  Their  indignation 
was  intense ;  like  true  "  Sons  of  the  Thunder "  their  first 
thought  was  to  call  down  vengeance  from  on  high. 

"  Lord,"  they  exclaimed,  "  would  you  have  us  bid  fire 
come  down  from  Heaven  and  consume  them,  even  as  did 
Elias?"2 

They  forgot  that  Heaven  has  other  powers  besides  thun- 
der in  its  gift,  and  gives  light  much  oftener  than  it  light- 
ens ;  so  was  it  to  be  under  the  new  reign  of  Jesus,  when 
zeal  and  charity  alone  would  enflame  the  heart  of  man. 

Looking  at  His  disciples,  the  Master  answered  them : 

"  You  do  not  know  of  what  spirit  you  are ;  the  Son  of 
Man  is  not  come  to  destroy  souls,  but  to  save  them."3  And 
without  blaming  these  people  for  having  spurned  them,  He 
passed  on  to  another  hamlet. 

As   they    walked   along    the   highway   a    Scribe    came 

1  Luke  ix.  52-55. 

2  The  Vulgate,  the  Syriac  of  Cureton,  and  the  Sinai'tic  Manuscript  omit 
these  last  words  :  ws  /cat  'II Mas  tiroiricrtv.  But  the  testimony  of  the  Ver- 
sions (Codex  Alexandrinus,  Ephrsemi,  Bezse)  seems  to  us  too  weighty  to 
be  passed  over  in  silence. 

a  These  words  are  omitted  in  the  greater  number  of  Manuscripts  :  but 
the  Cambridge  Codex  (copied  from  a  very  ancient  text),  the  Vulgate 
and  the  Syriac  Versions,  contain  them,  and  are  a  safe  guarantee  of  their 
authenticity. 


JESUS   GOES   UP  PRIVATELY  TO  JERUSALEM.     45 

forward,  touched  by  what  he  had  overheard  of  their 
talk. 

"  Master,"  he  said,  "  I  will  follow  Thee  whithersoever 
Thou  goest.:' 2 

The  Lord  took  no  heed  either  of  the  words  or  of  the  rank 
of  the  one  accosting  Him  ;  far  down  in  this  man's  heart  He 
beheld  an  overmastering  attachment  to  the  good  things  of 
earth ;  He  knew  that  his  inconsiderate  fervor  would  fail 
him  at  the  first  foretaste  of  the  poverty  of  Jesus,  and  there- 
fore He  answered :  — 

"  The  foxes  have  their  holes,  the  birds  of  the  air  have 
their  nests,  but  the  Son  of  Man  hath  not  where  to  lay  His 
Head." 

The  thought  of  following  a  homeless  Master  cast  a 
chill  over  the  Scribe's  courage,  and  he  dropped  back  and 
disappeared. 

That  same  day  and  upon  this  same  highroad 2  the 
Saviour  passed  before  a  house  of  mourning:  a  son  was 
weeping  over  the  death  of  his  father.  Looking  up  he  too 
knew  the  Presence  of  the  Master,  and  felt  himself  drawn 
to  leave  all  and  follow  Him.  So  too  Jesus  read  his  heart ; 
then,  as  quick  and  ready  to  help  the  weak  as  He  was 
prompt  in  repressing  the  presumptuous,  He  stepped  toward 
him. 

"  Follow  Me  ! "  he  said. 

Surprised  at  so  sudden  an  appeal  the  son  hesitated,  and 
asked  that  he  might  at  least  be  allowed  to  bury  his  father. 
But  the  Saviour,  seeing  that  any  delay,  even  the  most 
legitimate,  would  destroy  all  resolution  in  this  wavering 
soul,  caught  him  away  in  His  company,  with  that  saying 
which  so  many  Saints  have  repeated  since,  when  breaking 
away  from  all  dearest  ties  of  affection,  — 

"  Leave  the  dead  to  bury  their  dead ;  but  do  you  go  and 
announce  the  Kingdom  of  God ! "  3 


1  Luke  ix.  57,  58  ;  Matt.  viii.  19,  20. 

2  This  threefold  vocation  is  related  by  S.  Matthew  among  the  miracles 
which  fill  chapters  viii.  and  ix.  of  his  Gospel  :  here  again  we  do  not  hesi- 
tate to  prefer  the  order  followed  by  S.  Luke. 

8  Luke  ix.  59,  60. 


46         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

One  other  disciple,  called  in  like  manner,  also  wanted  to 
linger  and  bide  his  time. 

"  Lord,"  he  began,  "  I  will  follow  you,  but  first  allow  me 
to  take  farewell  of  my  kindred."  l 

"  Whoever,"  was  the  reply  of  Jesus,  "  puts  his  hand  to 
the  plough  and  looks  back  is  not  fit  for  the  Kingdom  of 
God." 

The  zeal  of  the  true  Apostle  must  rise  to  that  height  of 
perfection  which  makes,  not  a  step  only,  but  even  one 
single  backward  glance  impossible.2 

And  this  is  all  the  Gospel  tells  us  of  their  journey  across 
the  hills  of  Samaria.  Jesus  walked  still  more  privately 
and  quietly  the  nearer  they  approached  the  Holy  City,  and 
thus  they  found  their  way  within  its  walls  without  any  one 
having  recognized  Him,  oi-even  so  much  as  suspecting  His 
presence. 

II.    Jesus  in  the  Temple. 

John  vii.  11-53. 

From  the  first  of  these  festival  days  the  absence  of 
Jesus  had  been  remarked ;  every  one  was  speaking  of 
Him.3  The  princes  of  Jewry4  were  on  the  lookout  for  His 
coming ;  their  spies  were  inquiring  on  all  sides  as  to  where 
He  was  staying,  and  whether  He  would  appear  shortly. 
There  was  much  whispering  going  on  among  the  worship- 
pers, some  of  whom  were  now  timidly  upholding  him. 
"  He  is  a  good  man,"  they  urged,  while  others  would  an- 
swer, "No,  he  is  leading  the  people  astray;"  and,  foras- 

1  The  Syriac  Version  gives  this  sense  to  the  words,  which  is  evidently 
that  of  the  Greek  Text  (8.  Augustine,  Scrmo  c.  3.  S.  Basil,  in  loco).  The 
Vulgate  translates  :  "  His  quae  domi  sunt :"  "  Let  me  first  set  in  order 
the  business  of  my  household." 

2  Luke  ix.  61,  62. 
8  John  vii.  11-13. 

4  In  the  chapters  devoted  to  the  incidents  of  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles, 
following  his  usual  custom,  S.  John  distinguishes  between  the  masses 
(6x^o$,  ^0-0%)  and  the  Jews  ('lovdaioi).  Now,  as  we  have  already  observed, 
by  the  latter  term  he  refers  to  the  princes  of  Jewry,  and  in  particular  to 
the  members  of  the  Sanhedrin. 


JESUS  IN  THE   TEMPLE.  47 

much  as  His  antagonists  showed  the  boldest  front,  no  one 
dared  to  declare  himself  openly  in  His  favor  for  fear  of 
the  Jews. 

They  were  almost  in  the  midst  of  the  feast-making1 
when  Jesus  entered  Jerusalem ;  repairing  at  once  to  the 
Temple  He  seated  Himself  in  one  of  the  halls  which 
surrounded  the  porches,  and  began  to  teach. 

His  presence  there  was  another  surprise  to  the  people, 
and  at  first  they  listened  to  him  in  wonderment ;  it  was 
not  long,  however,  before  some  of  the  prominent  Jews 
present  broke  the  silence  with  muttered  criticisms. 

"  By  what  right  does  this  stranger  venture  to  teach  ? 
No  Eabbi  has  ever  instructed  him  in  Sacred  Literature ; 
this  man  was  brought  up  at  Nazareth,  —  in  a  carpenter's 
shop.  How  should  he  know  the  Scriptures  ? 2  he  has 
never  studied  them." 

Jesus  heard  these  detractors,  and  answered  them  "  that 
His  Doctrine  was  not  His,  but  His  Heavenly  Father's." 3 
It  rested  altogether  with  them  whether  they  too  would 
share  His  knowledge  of  celestial  things ;  they  had  "  but 
to  do  the  will  of  God,"  laying  aside  all  self-seeking  and 
pride,  and  they  would  become  truly  wise.  Thus  purified, 
their  eyes  would  be  enabled  to  see  "  that  He  spoke  not  of 
Himself,  was  not  seeking  His  own  glory,  and  did  nothing 
wrongfully "  in  speaking  as  He  had  done.  But  far  from 
hearkening  to  the  voice  of  God,  "  they  did  not  even  observe 
His  Law,"  for  which  they  made  such  show  of  veneration. 
Then,  changing  the  defence  into  an  attack,  Jesus  unmasked 
their  secret  motives. 

"  Why  do  you  seek  to  kill  Me  ? "  He  demanded 
suddenly. 

The  princes  of  the  people  kept  silence ;  but  the  crowd 
of  onlookers  could  not  catch  the  drift  of  this  question,  and 
at  once  assumed  that  the  Christ  was  beginning  to  rave  in 
His  talk. 

1  John  vii.  14,  15. 

2  Tpd/j.fiara.  The  Jews  having  scarcely  any  other  literature  beside  the 
Scriptures,  this  word  would  evidently  refer  to  knowledge  of  the  Sacred 
Books. 

8  John  vii.  16-20. 


48       THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  You  are  possessed  by  the  Devil,"  they  told  him. 
"  Who  is  it  that  is  seeking  to  kill  you  ? " 

His  only  reply1  was  a  reference  to  the  miracle  of 
Bethesda,  still  fresh  in  their  minds.  He  disclosed  how 
at  that  time  the  Sanhedrin  had  resolved  to  put  Him  to 
death,  and  thus  showed  the  iniquity  of  their  plots  against 
Him.  That  it  was  no  violation  of  the  sacred  rest  -to  heal 
the  suffering  upon  the  Sabbath-day,  —  this  the  Master  had 
already  proved  before  the  Council:  yet  here  again  He 
gave  the  people  an  argument  which  they  could  easily 
comprehend. 

Moses  had  received  the  commandment  given  to  Abra- 
ham by  God,  that  they  should  circumcise  the  new-born 
babe  upon  the  eighth  day.  Now  when  this  day  fell  on  a 
Sabbath  there  was  never  any  Jew  who  would  hesitate  to 
overlook  the  rules  of  Sabbath-rest  in  order  that  his  child 
might  be  consecrated  to  Jehovah  by  the  spilling  of  blood, 
together  with  all  holy  rites.  If  the  Precept  of  Circum- 
cision could  render  such  an  infraction  lawful,  how  was  it 
that  the  Sabbath  had  come  to  outweigh  in  importance  the 
divine  law  of  Charity  ?  If  it  was  legal  to  perform  such 
deeds,  and  to  shed  the  blood  of  man  in  order  to  purify  the 
body,  and  that  only  in  part,  how  was  it  criminal  in  him  to 
heal  the  whole  body  with  only  a  word  ? 

"  So  then  do  not  judge  according  to  appearances,"  Jesus 
concluded,  "  but  according  to  justice." 

This  vindication  discomfited  the  enemies  of  the  Lord 
and  delighted  the  multitude ;  the  citizens  of  Jerusalem 
especially,  better  informed  than  the  visitors  as  to  the 
malice  of  their  leading  men,  could  not  repress  their 
amazement.2 

"  Is  not  this  the  man  they  want  to  put  to  death  ? "  they 
asked.  "  And  now  he  preaches  publicly  and  no  one  has 
a  word  to  say  to  him.  Have  the  Sanhedrin-Councillors 
recognized  him  as  the  Christ?" 

This,  however,  was  little  more  than  a  glimmering  of  the 
truth  which  now  flashed  upon  some  few  Jews  of  the  town, 

1  John  vii.  21,  24.  2  John  vii.  25,  26. 


JESUS  IN  THE   TEMPLE.  49 

and  for  an  instant ;  but  it  was  as  quickly  overshadowed  by 
their  hasty  prejudices.  The  instructions  of  the  Scribes 
recurred  to  their  mind,  how  the  Christ  ought  to  appear 
unexpectedly,  —  His  very  origin  was  to  be  hidden,  —  and 
thus  lie  should  remain  unknown  in  Israel,  until  of  a  sud- 
den He  would  reveal  Himself  on  the  day  when  He  should 
receive  His  Anointing  at  the  hands  of  Elias.1 

"  As  for  this  man,"  they  said,  "  we  know  whence  he  is  ; 
but  when  the  Christ  shall  come  no  one  will  know  whence 
He  comes."2 

Jesus  would  not  permit  this  misleading  tradition  to  de- 
lude the  popular  mind  any  longer.  To  those  who  would 
deny  Him  the  dignity  of  the  Christ,  because  they  knew 
His  home  and  kindred,  He  replied  that  over  and  above 
His  earthly  origin  He  had  a  mysterious  beginning. 

"  I  am  not  come  of  Myself,"  He  said  to  them.3  "  He 
that  sendeth  Me  does  truly  live;4  you  do  not  know  Him, 
but  I  know  Him,  because  I  am  from  Him  and  He  has 
sent  Me." 

This  sublime  refutation  greatly  irritated  the  Jews ;  from 
dumb,  unreasoning  resentment  they  passed  to  acts  of  vio- 
lence, and  endeavored  to  seize  Jesus.  "  And,  notwith- 
standing, no  man  laid  hands  on  Him,  because  His  hour 
was  not  come."  5  Moreover,  there  were  many  among  those 
present  who  believed,  and  said  :  — 

1  S.  Justin,  Dialogus  cum  Tryphone,  viii. 

2  This  opinion  had  risen  (1)  from  the  views  held  by  the  Jews  in  regard 
to  the  divine  origin  of  the  Messiah;  (2)  from  the  state  of  obscurity  into 
which  the  remnant  of  David's  race  had  fallen;  (3)  from  the  Prophecy  of 
Daniel,  which  foretold  a  mysterious  appearance  of  the  Son  of  Man  (Dan. 
vii.  13)  ;  (4)  perhaps  also  from  their  manner  of  rendering  verse  8  in 
Chapter  liii.  of  Isaiah,  as  the  Septuagint  and  the  Vulgate  have  trans- 
lated it;  "  Generationem  ejus  quis  enarravit?"  And  so  gave  it  this 
false  interpretation. 

3  John  vii.  28-31. 

*'A\7)6li'6s,  in  S.  John,  has  the  sense  of  "real,  actually  existing  "  much 
oftener  than  that  of  "  truly."  The  Vulgate,  which  generally  translates  it 
by  "verus,"  does  not  take  it  as  having  the  meaning  "verax"  anywhere 
except  in  the  Apocalypse  (xix.  11). 

5  By  these  repeated  words  (John  vii.  30  ;  viii.  20  ;  xiii.  1)  S.  John  would 
have  us  understand  that  God  would  not  permit  the  death  of  the  Christ  un- 
til the  time  set  down  for  it  in  the  Eternal  Counsels  ;  but  from  this  it  does 
not  follow  that  the  Saviour  could  put  Himself  in  the  way  of  perils,  under 

vol.  ir.  —  4 


50        THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  When  the  Christ  comes  will  He  do  more  miracles  than 
this  man  does  ? " 

The  respect  shown  Him  by  this  section  of  the  populace, 
their  ever-increasing  faith,  the  things  which  were  whis- 
pered about  in  favor  of  Jesus,  —  all  these  taken  together 
soon  alarmed  the  Sanhedrin  people,  and  they  determined  to 
act l  at  once.  Some  of  their  satellites  were  despatched 
to  lay  hold  upon  the  Galilean ;  but  all  that  they  were  able 
to  do  was  to  mingle  with  the  crowd  of  listeners,  and  dis- 
cover that,  though  He  was  well  aware  of  their  intentions, 
He  showed  no  signs  of  fear.  It  was  useless  for  His  ene- 
mies to  try  to  precipitate  the  fatal  hour.  He  declared 
"  that  He  was  to  be  with  them  for  yet  a  little  while,  until 
the  day  when  He  was  to  return  to  His  Father."  Then 
indeed  they  would  seek  Him,  no  longer  with  wicked  in- 
tent, but  repentant  and  despairing,  amid  the  ruins  of 
Jerusalem. 

"You  shall  seek  Me  and  you  shall  not  find  Me,"  He 
said;  "nor  shall  you  be  able  to  come  there  where  I 
am." 

"  Where  will  he  go,"  they  murmured  among  themselves, 
"  that  we  may  not  find  him  ?  Will  he  go  to  the  Gentiles 
dispersed  over  the  world  ? 2  will  he  become  a  Doctor  among 
them  ? "  And  they  were  at  a  loss  to  imagine  what  Jesus 
meant  by  saying  this. 

Meanwhile  the  festal  celebrations  were  still  progressing, 
and  for  the  last  time  the  Holy  Waters  had  been  poured 

the  pretext  that,  as  "  His  hour  was  not  come,"  His  enemies  could  not  pre- 
vail against  Him  ;  this  would  have  been  to  tempt  God,  Who  had  decreed 
that  His  Son  "should  come  under  infirmity"  (Hebrews  v.  2),  be  subjected 
voluntarily  to  the  ordinary  course  of  human  affairs.  Therefore  we  see 
Jesus  so  careful  to  observe  this  ordinance  of  the  Father,  never  hazarding 
His  life  in  rash  confidence,  but  withdrawing,  and  often  even  conceal' 
ing  Himself,  to  anticipate  the  plottings  of  His  toes;  in  a  word,  acting 
always  and  everywhere  as  a  Man,  notwithstanding  that  He  was  God 
Almighty. 

1  Johii  vii.  32-36. 

2  Aiaairopa  tQv  'EXX^fwc  signifies  not  merely  the  Jews  of  the  Dispersion, 
but  those  Pagan  countries  as  well,  through  which  the  Jews  were  dispersed. 
In  fact  the  word'EM^es  in  the  New  Testament  refers  to  the  Gentiles  as 
distinguished  from  the  Jews  (Acts  xvi.  1,3;  xix.  10,  17  ;  xx.  21 ;  xxi.  28  i 
Rom.  i.  16  ;  ii.  10,  etc  ). 


JESUS  IN  THE  TEMPLE.  51 

out  within  the  Temple.1  It  may  be  well  to  recall  some- 
thing of  the  significance  of  this  symbolic  rite,  for  on  the 
morrow  Jesus  would  allude  to  it.  Every  morning  during 
those  seven  days  a  priest  descended  to  the  well-spring  of 
Siloe,  and  in  a  golden  vessel  drew  up  three  measures  of 
water  from  the  fountain,  with  which  he  returned,  bearing 
it  before  him  in  solemn  state.  Upon  his  entrance  within 
the  porches  the  trumpets  sounded,  accompanying  him  with 
the  wild  clash  of  their  symphonies,  while  he  mounted  to 
the  highest  step  of  the  Altar ;  there  two  great  jars  had  been 
already  set  forth,  one  made  of  silver,  into  which  the  minis- 
tering priest  poured  the  water  brought  from  Siloe;  the 
other  of  gold,  which  he  filled  with  wine.  These  libations 
once  performed,  the  whole  people  entoned  the  Hallel,2 
waving  their  rustling  palm-branches,  and  giving  way  to 
such  glad  transports  of  feeling  that  the  Rabbis  tell  us  it 
is  impossible  for  one  who  never  witnessed  it  to  conceive 
the  universal  sense  of  joy.3 

But  on  the  eighth  day 4  this  ceremony  no  longer  took 
place ;  those  who,  in  the  early  morning,  ascended  to  the 
Temple  to  offer  sacrifice,  instead  of  the  joyous  songs  and 
the  chanting,  found  a  religious  stillness  brooding  over  the 
Sanctuary.  This  was  the  moment  Jesus  chose  to  explain 
the  meaning  of  their  sacred  rite. 

Standing  in  the  centre  of  the  porches  He  cried  aloud  : 
"  If  any   one    thirst    let    him    come    to   Me,   and   let 
him   drink !      He   that    believeth   in    Me,   as   the   Scrip- 

1  John  vii.  37. 

2  Ps.  cxii.  to  cxviii.  in  the  Hebrew  ;  cxii.  to  cxvii.  in  the  Vulgate. 

3  Soucca,  v.  1. 

4  John  vii.  37-39.  The  incident  here  recounted  by  S.  John  took  place 
"  the  last  day  of  the  Feast,  which  was  the  solemnest  of  all."  By  this,  we 
believe,  he  refers  not  to  the  seventh  day,  when  at  evening-time  the  Jews 
gave  over  living  under  their  greenwood-tents,  but  to  the  eighth,  which  was 
consecrated  by  a  sabbatic  observance  and  a  great  gathering  of  the  people 
(Num.  xxix.  35-38 ;  2  Esdr.  viii.  18).  From  the  evidence  of  the  second 
Book  of  Machabees  (x.  6)  and  from  Josephus  {Antiquitatcs,  iii.  10,  4)  we 
know  that  this  day  made  part  of  the  Festival,  which  terminated  at  the 
same  time  as  the  civil  year.  The  ceremony  to  which  Jesus  is  alluding 
did  not  take  place  on  this  day  ;  the  testimony  of  a  single  Babbi 
(Judas  the  Holy)  is  not  enough  to  establish  the  contrary  opinion  (Soxicca, 
XV.  19). 


52         Till  111  >  YE  All  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

ture  sayeth  :l  Out  of  his  belly  shall  fluw  rivers  of  living 
water ! " 

"He  was  speaking,"  adds  the  Evangelist,  "of  the  Holy 
Spirit  which  his  disciples  were  to  receive;"  and  tin's,  He 
promised  the  Jews,  would  no  longer  be  like  that  weak 
spring-water,2  but  like  a  mighty  river  which  should  iill 
them  with  overflowing  gifts  of  grace.3 

This  utterance  made  a  great  impression  upon  the  peo- 
ple; more  than  one  heart  waiting  there  had  long  yearned 
after  waters  which  would  not  fleet  away  and  vanish,  like 
those  of  Siloe ;  and  even  so  in  their  Sacred  Oracles  they 
had  discerned  certain  obscure  inklings  as  to  a  promised 
never-failing  Fountain,  wherefrom  the  streams  of  truth 
should  flow  for  all  alike.  Had  the  hour  at  last  arrived 
for  that  great  marvel  ?  Many  believed  so.  Some  were 
already  saying,4  "Truly,  this  is  the  Prophet!"5 

"  It  is  the  Christ ! "  they  shouted. 

But  the  Scribes6  sternly  repressed  these  tokens  of  hom- 
age, everywhere  objecting :  — 

1  These  words  are  not  a  literal  quotation  of  the  Old  Testament,  but  a 
figure  of  speech,  by  which  Jesus  expresses  the  thought  of  several  Prophets. 
Ezechiel  had  spoken  of  a  River,  which  should  How  from  the  Temple,  heal- 
ing all  that  its  waters  touched  (Ezech.  xlvii.  1-1 '!).  Zachary  promised  the 
thirsty  throngs  a  Spring  of  living  water  (Zach.  xiv.  8)  ;  Isaiah  told  them 
how  a  mighty  stream  would  follow  them  into  the  wilderness  (Is.  xliii.  20). 
This  same  Prophet  represented  Israel  as  a  garden  wetted  with  unfailing 
fountains  of  water  (Is.  lviii.  11),  and  ascribed  words  like  these  to  Jehovah: 
"Ho,  every  one  that  thirsteth,  come  ye  to  the  waters,  and  with  gladness 
shall  ye  draw  out  water  from  the  well-springs  of  the  Saviour"  (Is.  xii.  3, 
lv.  1 ). 

2  John  iv.  14. 

8  The  spilling  of  the  waters  of  Siloe  within  the  Temple  was  manifestly 
a  symbolic  rite.  This  the  Jews  regarded  as  at  the  same  time  typical  of  the 
kindly  rain  falling  upon  their  harvest  fields  [Rosh-Hashanah,  f.  16,  1), — 
as  a  memorial  of  the  water-spring  from  the  Riven  Pock,  which  followed 
them  in  every  place  throughout  the  desert  (1  Cor.  x.  4)  ;  and  as  a  fore- 
tokening of  the  Divine  Spirit  which  the  Messiah  was  to  pour  out  upon  them 
(Soucca,  53,  i. ).  But  it  was  the  judgment  of  the  most  illustrious  Rabbis 
that  the  last  named  signification  was  the  principal  one  in  everyone's  mind. 

4  John  vii.  40-49.  ' 

6  By  this  they  alluded  to  the  Great  Prophet,  announced  by  Moses  (Dent. 
xviii.  15).  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  Sanhedrin  had  also  inquired  of 
John  Baptist,  "Are  you  the  Prophet  V   (John  i.  21.)    Sec  Vol.  I.,  p.  129. 

6  The  learning  displayed  by  these  traducers  seems  to  indicate  that  they 
were  Scribes  and  Doctors  of  Israel. 


JESUS  IN  THE   TEMPLE.  53 

"  Is  it  possible  that  the  Christ  should  come  out  of  Gali- 
lee ?  Do  we  not  read  in  Scripture  that  He  must  be  born 
of  the  blood  of  David,  and  in  the  village  of  Bethlehem, 
where  David  dwelt  ?  " 

The  multitude  of  common  people  knew  not  how  to  an- 
swer this  argument,  and  began  to  share  something  of  their 
teachers'  resentment  against  Him ;  some  indeed,  much  dis- 
quieted by  the  strong  language  of  the  doctors,  were  eager 
for  arresting  the  Christ  at  once ;  others,  however,  took  up 
the  defence,  and  the  latter  must  have  been  the  more 
numerous  because  no  one  ventured  to  touch  Him.  Even 
the  guards  commissioned  to  seize  Him  comprehended 
clearly  enough  that  any  act  of  violence  would  be  likely  to 
arouse  this  great  concourse  of  people ;  they  therefore  re- 
turned to  the  Pontiffs  and  the  Pharisees.  These  frowned 
upon  the  officers  in  stern  displeasure. 

"  Why  have  you  not  brought  him  here  ?  "  they  said. 

"  Never  man  spoke  like  this  man,"  replied  the  guards ; 
and  they  went  on  to  explain  what  command  He  exerted 
over  the  crowds.  But  in  their  vexation  the  members  of 
the  Sanhedrin  loaded  them  with  sarcastic  queries. 

"  So,  then,  you  too  are  befooled  by  him,  are  you  ?  Is 
there  a  single  one  of  the  Magistrates  and  Pharisees  who 
has  believed  in  him  ?  As  for  this  rabble,  who  know  noth- 
ing of  the  Law,  they  are  accursed." 

Only  one  member  of  the  Great  Council  ventured  to 
utter  a  protest  against  this  iniquitous  action.1  It  was 
Nicodemus,  the  Scribe  who  once  came  by  night  to  seek 
the  Lord.  Ever  since  that  time,  when  his  heart  was  first 
touched  by  grace,  though  too  weak-souled  to  give  himself 
up  to  its  innermost  promptings,  he  had  always  retained  a 
secret  love  for  the  Master ;  now  he  spoke  out  with  some 
feeling. 

"  Does  our  Law  allow  us  to  condemn  a  man  without 
having  heard  him,  and  without  knowing  what  he  has 
done  ? " 

Timid  and  mild  as  this  defence  was,  it  enraged  the 
Sanhedrin. 

*  Jolm  vii.  50-52. 


54         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  Ah,  you  too  !  Are  you  a  Galilean,  then  ? "  they  shouted 
at  him.  "  Examine  the  Scriptures,  and  learn  that  no 
Prophet  ever  came  out  of  Galilee." 

Amid  the  storm  of  excitement  these  Doctors  of  Israel 
forgot  that  the  country  which  they  so  despised  had  been, 
in  truth,  the  fruitful  mother  of  Prophets  ;  for  out  of  Thisbe 
had  come  Elias,  and  from  the  regions  of  the  north,  Jonas, 
Nahum,  and  Osee.  Such  a  season  of  blindness  and  heated 
passion  left  no  opportunity  for  wiser  counsels,  and  they 
broke  up  the  sitting  without  determining  upon  anything 
definitely,  each  one  returning  to  his  own  home. 


CHAPTER    V. 
THE  FEAST  OF  THE  TABERNACLES   (continued). 

I.     The  Adulteress. 

John  viii.  1-59. 

When  dusk  had  settled  over  the  city,  Jesus  walked  with- 
out the  walls,  directing  His  steps  toward  the  Mount  of 
Olives.1  This  was  the  spot  where  He  had  been  accustomed 
to  pass  the  night  during  the  several  times  He  sojourned  in 
Jerusalem,  whether  because  He  had  been  invited  to  take 
shelter  in  some  dwelling-place  thereabouts,  or,  it  may  be, 
not  having  where  to  rest  His  head,  He  sought  slumber 
under  cover  of  the  spreading  groves.  At  daybreak  He 
wended  His  way  back  to  the  Temple ;  at  once  "  all  the 
people  came  to  Him,  and  having  seated  Himself,  He  taught 
them."  The  Sanhedrin  had  not  in  the  least  renounced  the 
pursuit ;  but  comprehending  that,  more  than  anything  else, 
it  was  expedient  for  them  to  draw  the  multitude  away  from 
Him,  they  turned  their  whole  attention  to  this  end.  Some- 
thing occurred  immediately  to  further  their  projects. 

The  seven  days  spent  beneath  their  sylvan  huts  were  not 
without  peril  for  the  uprightness  of  the  Israelites ;  often- 
times merriment  degenerated  into  license,  and  it  so  hap- 
pened that  during  this  very  night  a  woman  had  been  taken 
in  adultery.  The  custom  of  stoning  a  guilty  wife  had  ceased 
to  be  enforced  for  a  long  time  now;2  divorce  alone  satisfied 
the  vengeance  of  the  wronged  husband  ;3  and,  at  this  period 

l  John  viii.  1,  2.  2  Deut.  xxii.  22-24.  3  Sotah,  vi. 


56        THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

especially,  when  the  Roman  authorities  reserved  to  them- 
selves all  rights  over  lii'e  and  death,  no  other  punishment 
was  possible. 

None  the  less  did  the  Sanhedrin-Councillors  drag  the 
sinning  woman  up  to  the  Temple,  and  pushing  her  into 
the  presence  of  the  Lord,  — 

"Master,"  they  said,1  "  this  woman  has  just  now  been 
taken  in  adultery.  Moses  commanded  us  in  the  Law  to 
stone  the  woman  guilty  of  this  crime.  What  say  you  as 
to  this  ? " 

They  meant  to  oblige  Him  either  to  put  Himself  in  op- 
position to  Moses  by  rescuing  the  sinner,  or  else  force  Him 
to  consign  her  to  the  death  torture.  Now  they  foresaw 
that  the  latter  decision  would  not  only  destroy  His  great 
renown  for  gentleness  in  the  people's  eyes,  but  would 
moreover  expose  Him  to  the  vengeance  of  Rome. 

Jesus,  at  a  glance,  detected  the  snare ;  beneath  this 
zealous  exterior  of  piety,  He  saw  clearly  that  there  was 
nothing  but  hypocrisy.  Hence  He  deigned  no  reply ;  but 
stooping  down  toward  the  ground,  He  fell  to  writing  with 
His  finger  in  the  sand.  This  He  did  to  indicate  that  any 
profitless  occupation,  such  as  this  of  tracing  letters  in  the 
dust,  disconnected  and  meaningless  signs  though  they  were, 
yet  in  His  eyes  seemed  worthier  of  attention  than  the  query 
proposed  by  these  fanatic  Doctors. 

And  on  their  part  they  chose  to  act  as  if  unconscious 
of  the  Master's  disdain ; 2  they  persisted  in  attracting  His 
notice  to  the  shame-struck,  wretched  woman,  and  waxed 
the  more  urgent  with  look  and  voice.  At  last  Jesus  drew 
Himself  up. 

"  Let  him  who  is  without  sin  among  you,"  He  said, 
"  cast  the  first  stone." 

Without  decrying  the  law  of  blood,  still  He  would  not 
have  any  hands  essay  the  execution  of  its  mandates  save 
such  as  were  worthy  of  the  charge.  Not  a  finger  was  lifted 
in  this  assembly,  which  until  now  had  shown  itself  so  arro- 
gant.   Jesus,  once  more  half-kneeling  on  the  ground,  began 

1  John  viii.  3-6,  2  John  viii.  7-11. 


THE  ADULTERESS.  57 

to  write  again ;  "  it  was  their  sins  He  was  recording  in  the 
sand,"  so  says  a  curious  lection  in  an  ancient  Codex,1  and 
each  man  there  understood  this  mute  language,  whereby 
they  stood  self-convicted.  Scribes  and  Pharisees  were  alike 
dumb-founded  and  silent ;  their  hands  crept  away  from  the 
sinner's  garments,  their  eyes  fell,  overwhelmed  with  shame 
they  slunk  away,  one  after  another,  —  first  the  older  ones 
among  them,  their  souls  consumed  with  evil  spite,  then  the 
younger  men.  Soon  in  all  this  open  space, —  here  in  the 
centre  of  the  crowded  court, —  there  remained  no  one  else 
besides  Jesus  and  the  guilty  woman,  "  the  uttermost  misery, 
and  the  uttermost  mercy,"2  here  left  finally  face  to  face. 

She  was  still  shuddering  at  the  feet  of  the  Master.  Once 
more  Jesus  stood  erect,  looked  about  Him,  and  seeing  no 
one  but  her,  — 

<:  Woman,"  He  said,  "  where  are  your  accusers  ?  Has  no 
one  condemned  you  ? " 

"No  one,  Lord." 

"And  neither  will  I  condemn  you  ;  go  and  sin  no  more." 

This  pardon  was  a  marvel  of  Charity,  yet  it  so  completely 
overturned  the  received  code  of  morality  that  for  a  long 
while  it  continued  to  be  a  stumbling-block  for  the  Church. 
Always  pitiless  to  the  adulteress,  those  Eastern  nations 
who  became  Christians  were  loath  to  believe  that  Jesus, 
while  so  sensitive  as  to  everything  pertaining  to  chastity, 
would  publicly  protect  a  fallen  woman,  humiliate  her  ac- 
cusers, and  shield  her  from  punishment.  Would  not  such 
indulgence  merely  embolden  men  in  crime  ?  This  fear  led 
a  great  number  of  pastors  to  pass  over  the  Gospel  story 
in  silence ;  some  Churches  went  so  far  as  to  suppress  it 
in  their  copies,3  and  so  now-a-days  we  vainly  look  for  it  in 

1"E7pai/,ei'  et's  r^v  yr\v  evbs  eKatrrov  airwv  ras  afMaprias.  This  reading,  as 
found  in  the  Codex  Naniamis  (U),  preserved  in  S.  Mark's  Library  in  Venice, 
has  little  value  except  as  a  commentary,  noteworthy,  however,  on  account 
of  its  antiquity. 

2  S.  Augustine,  in  Joan.  viii. 

3  There  is  very  precise  testimony  as  to  this  fact:  "  Nonnulli  modicse 
fidei,  vel  potius  ininiici  fidei,  credo,  metuentes  peccandi  impunitatem  dari 
mulieribus  suis,  illud  quod  de  adulters  indnlgentia  Dominus  fecit  abstule- 
runt  de  codicibus  suis,  quasi  permissionem  peccandi  tribueret  qui  dixit : 
Jam  deinceps  noli  peccare  "  (S.  Augustine,  De  Conjugiis  adultcrinis,  ii.  7). 


58         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MIXISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

many  ancient  manuscripts.1  Succeeding  ages  learned  to 
draw  a  jnster  idea  of  its  meaning,  and  so  restored  this  page 
of  the  Gospel,  which  sets  the  Heart  of  Jesus  before  us  in 
the  truest  light;  indeed,  there  is  none  which  teaches  in 
clearer  accents  that  the  real  triumph  of  chastity  lies,  not 
so  much  in  flying  any  contact  with  the  defiled  soul,  but 
rather  in  purifying  it,  even  as  the  ray  of  sunlight  pene- 
trates  the   mire   and   illumines   it  without   being   soiled 

"  Non  mediocrem  scrupulum  movere  potuit  imperitis'  (S.  Ambrose,  Apolo- 
gia altera  David,  i.).  Nicon,  an  Armenian  monk  who  lived  in  the  tenth 
century,  says  that  this  passage  was  stricken  out  of  the  Armenian  Version 
as  liable  to  do  harm  (Migne,  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  i.  p.  656). 

1  To  us  these  are  reasons  enough  to  explain  :  (1)  How  it  happens  that 
this  incident  is  not  found  in  many  of  the  oldest  and  best  manuscripts  (the 
Alexandrian,  Sinaitic,  Vatican,  the  Palimpsest  of  Ephrsem),  in  certain 
Versions  and  in  many  Fathers  (Origen,  S.  Cyril,  Tertullian,  S.  Cyprian, 
S.  John  Chrysostom)  ;  (2)  how,  after  being  restored  later  on,  it  presents 
such  a  large  number  of  differences,  and  occupies  so  many  and  various  posi- 
tions in  the  manuscripts,  sometimes  being  placed  in  the  seventh  chapter  of 
S.  John,  sometimes  at  the  end  of  his  Gospel,  sometimes  after  S.  Luke's 
twenty-first  chapter.  Protestant  exegetical  critics  have  carefully  scruti- 
nized such  words  and  phrases  in  this  passage  as  are  foreign  to  the  usual 
style  of  S.  John,  and  hence  have  concluded  that  it  is  the  work  of  some 
stranger's  hand.  Father  Patrizi  thinks  that  this  last  point  may  be  con- 
ceded without  at  all  impairing  the  canonicity  of  the  fragment :  "  Condem- 
nandus  certe  non  esset  qui  pro  certo  haberet  banc  irepiicoir-qv  esse  canonicani, 
negaret  tamen  a  Joanne  esse  conscriptam,  sed  ab  alio  auctore  divinitus  in- 
spirato,  atque  huic  Joannis  capiti  insertam."  However,  the  learned  Jesuit, 
after  having  examined  the  differences  in  style  remarked  in  the  first  verses 
of  Chapter  viii.,  thinks  with  good  reason  that  they  are  too  unimportant  to 
support  any  such  hypothesis.  His  idea  is  that  S.  John  did  not  write  the 
story  of  the  adulteress  until  after  he  had  composed  his  Gospel,  and  so  in- 
serted it  later.  This  supposition,  taken  together  with  the  scrupulosity  of 
the  first  pastors,  is  amply  sufficient  to  explain  the  variations,  as  we  have 
said.  Beside  this,  direct  proof's  to  establish  its  authenticity  are  not  want- 
ing. Father  Corluy  has  put  them  in  scholarly  shape  in  his  PiUegrite  de 
VEoangile  (p.  42).  A  resume  of  his  arguments  will  be  enough  for  our  pur- 
pose: (1)  We  find  this  pericope  in  the  oldest  and  most  important  MSS.  in 
cursive  letters,  in  the  Vulgate,  and  in  many  copies  of  the  Italic  Version  ; 
(2)  very  many  Fathers  were  accpiainted  with  it  and  quote  from  it :  Con- 
stitutions apostoliques,  ii.  24.  Synopsis  of  S.  Athanasius  (Migne,  Patrolo- 
gie grecque,  t.  xxviii.  401).  S.  Pacian,  ad  Sempronium,  iii.  S.  Ambrose, 
Apologia  altera  David,  i.  S.  Augustine,  De  Oonjvgiis  aduterinis,  ii.  7. 
S.  Leo,  Sermo  lxii.  4,  etc.  S.  Jerome,  whose  testimony  is  of  especial  im- 
portance, says  that  he  had  read  this  fragment  "  in  multis,  et  grrecis,  et 
latinis  codicibus"  (Adversus  Pelagium,  ii.  6)  ;  (3)  we  may  add  finally  that 
the  same  over-nicety  which  resulted  in  the  suppression  of  this  narrative  ren- 
ders it  extremely  improbable  that  it  should  have  ever  been  interpolated. 


THE  ADULTERESS.  59 

thereby.  And  it  was  this  the  Master  proposed  to  show 
by  His  tender  mercy  toward  the  erring  woman,  —  that 
charity  and  grace  are  mightier  than  punishments  to  pre- 
vent wrong-doing ;  and  so  too  He  wished  to  remind  men, 
•weakly  indulgent  as  they  are  as  regards  their  own  dis- 
orderly deeds,  yet  so  severe  toward  women,  that  their 
mutual  crime  is  of  equal  offence  in  the  eyes  of  Divine 
Justice ;  most  of  all  He  meant  to  tell  sinning  woman, 
spurned  and  despised  by  the  world,  that  there  is  no  dark 
stain  which  the  hand  of  Jesus  cannot  wipe  away,  no  fault 
which  He  will  not  pardon  unto  the  repentant  sinner. 

Thereupon  Jesus  proceeded  to  the  Treasury,  where  He 
sat  down  and  continued  to  instruct  the  people.1  The  part 
of  the  Temple  known  by  this  name  was  the  court  reserved 
for  women,  where  there  stood  thirteen  caskets,  placed  there 
to  receive  offerings.  Within  this  open  space  rose  two  great 
candlesticks,  fifty  cubits  in  height  and  lacquered  with  gold. 
Every  night,  during  the  festival  season,  the  glare  of  its 
sparkling  lights  could  be  seen  over  the  whole  town  and 
all  round  about  the  populace  danced  to  the  sound  of  flutes 
and  every  sort  of  instruments. 

Jesus  looking  at  these  great  torches,  now  extinguished, 
was  moved  thereby  to  say  :  — 

"  I  am  the  Light  of  the  world,  he  who  follows  Me  does 
not  walk  in  darkness,  but  shall  have  the  light  of  life."  2 

Here  again  came  a  new  swarm  of  Pharisees,  who  mingled 
with  the  other  auditors  of  all  ranks,  and  at  once  found 
fault  with  this  statement,  declaring  that  it  was  worthless 
regarded  as  evidence,  inasmuch  as  Jesus  rendered  it  to 
Himself.  The  Lord  replied  that  light  does  not  have  to 
prove  its  existence,  it  needs  only  to  shine;3  nevertheless, 
if,  with  the  Law,  they  demanded  the  testimony  of  two  wit- 
nesses,4 in  addition  to  His  own  self-evident  testimony  He 
might  add  that  of  the  Father  Who  had  sent  Him  into  this 
world. 

1  John  viii.  20. 

2  John  viii.  12-20. 

8  "Testimonium  sibi  perhibet  lux  .  .  .  sibi  ipsi  testis  est  ut  cognosce 
tur  lux"  (S.  Augustinus,  in  Joan.  viii.). 
4  Deut.  xvii.  16. 


60         THIRD   YE. Ml  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

The  Pharisees  greeted  these  words  with  loud  mockery, 
bidding  Him  produce  this  "Witness  whereof  He  spoke.  It 
was  of  no  avail  for  Jesus  to  urge  that,  if  they  would  but 
open  their  eyes,  they  would  see  in  Him  the  Father ;  this 
allusion  to  His  Divinity  only  the  more  enraged  the  mutter- 
ing lawyers  and  Scribes,  in  so  far  that  many  proposed  to  take 
violent  measures  against  Him  on  the  spot ;  but  this  time 
too,  "  no  one  stopped  Him  because  His  hour  was  not  yet 
come." 

Without  showing  any  signs  of  fear  Jesus  continued 
speaking;1  going  on  to  tell  them,  as  He  had  done  more 
than  once  heretofore,  of  His  early  death  and  the  miseries 
which  it  would  bring  down  upon  the  Jews. 

"  I  go  away,"  He  said,  "  and  you  shall  seek  Me  and  you 
shall  die  in  your  sins.     Whither  I  go,  you  cannot  come." 

"  Is  he  about  to  kill  himself,  then  ?"  exclaimed  the  princes 
of  Jewry ;  "  because  he  says :  '  You  cannot  come  whither 

The  popular  belief  held^  that  the  man  guilty  of  suicide 
sunk  himself  to  the  nethermost  regions  of  Hell.2  Was  the 
Christ  about  to  descend  to  those  dark  abysses,  so  that  no 
one  might  be  able  to  follow  Him  ?  Jesus  made  these  scof- 
fers realize  that  Hell  was  destined  for  them  rather  than  for 
Him. 

"  You  are  from  below,"  He  said  to  them,  "  and  I  am  from 
on  High ;  you  are  of  the  world,  I  am  not  of  the  world.  I 
have  told  you  that  you  shall  die  in  your  sins ;  ay,  if  you 
do  not  believe  that  I  am  He,  you  shall  die  in  your  sins." 

"  Who  are  you  ?  "  was  the  Jews'  reply. 

"  That  which  I  have  told  you  from  the  beginning," 3 
Jesus  answered,4  and  He  reiterated  what  He  had  declared 

1  John  viii.  21. 

2  Tovrw  fj.h  atoijs  5{xiTal  T°ts  ^I'X&s  ffKoriurepos  (Josephus,  Bellum 
Judaicum,  iii.  8.  5). 

3  Tr)v  dpxhv  on  nai  \a\C>  vfv.v.  The  words  tt\v  dfixv"  have  given  rise 
to  some  different  interpretations  of  the  text.  The  Vulgate  and  many  Latin 
Fathers  translated  them  by  "  principium "  :  "I  am  essentially  that  of 
which  I  have  told  you."  Others  read:  "Ever  since  the  beginning,  orig- 
inallv."     This  last  meaning  seems  to  us  the  most  natural  of  any. 

*  John  viii.  25-30. 


THE  ADULTERESS.  61 

so  many  times,  that  all  things  pertaining  to  Him,  His 
teaching,  His  knowledge  of  men,  His  right  to  judge  them, 
came,  not  from  Himself,  but  from  the  Father  Who  had 
sent  Him. 

These  words  merely  puzzled  without  enlightening  His 
antagonists,  for  they  did  not  conceive  that  He  had  God  for 
His  Father ;  and  so  the  Lord  added  that  only  His  death 
could  dissipate  their  blindness.  Then  He  spoke  of  His 
Union  with  God,  of  His  Obedience,  of  the  Cross  whereon 
He  was  to  be  lifted  up,  while  even  there  His  Father  would 
not  abandon  Him  in  utter  loneliness ; 1  and  so  forceful  were 
His  words  that  many,  even  some  of  the  most  headstrong, 
felt  their  hearts  drawn  toward  Him. 

But  it  was,  after  all,  only  a  faint  flash  of  faith,  so  weak 
and  flickering  that  the  lightest  breath  would  extinguish  it. 
It  was  put  to  the  test  immediately.  Addressing  these 
hearts  now  touched  so  unexpectedly,  Jesus  said  to  them:2 

"  If  you  faithfully  observe  My  words  you  shall  be  truly 
My  disciples  and  you  shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth 
shall  set  you  free."  His  last  words  re-awakened  their 
prejudices. 

"  We  are  children  of  Abraham,"  they  responded,  "  and 
we  have  never  been  in  slavery;  why  then  do  you  say, 
'  You  shall  be  freed  ? » " 

The  Master  showed  them  that  as  long  as  they  were  sin- 
ners they  were  the  slaves  of  sin,  and  could  only  expect  the 
lowest  position  in  their  Father's  Home ;  it  was  for  Him, 
the  Son  and  Heir  of  the  Household,  to  deliver  them  from 
this  bondage,  that  they  might  become  really  free. 

"  Abraham  is  our  father,"  the  Jews  objected. 

"  If  you  are  the  children  of  Abraham,"  replied  Jesus,  "  do 
the  works  of  Abraham.  But  now  you  seek  to  kill  Me,  Who 
have  told  you  the  truth  which  I  have  learned  of  God. 
Abraham  did  not  thus." 

They  only  gathered  from  this  that  Jesus  was  speaking  of 

1  Oik  &<p7)K<!v  fie  fxovov  (John  viii.  29).  Only  a  few  moments  before  His 
Agony  the  Lord  was,  for  the  last  time,  to  repeat  these  words  :  Kai  ovk  el/d 
fi6vos,  8ti  6  ttcltijp  /.ler  ifxov  eariv  (John  xvi.  32). 

8  John  viii.  31-47. 


G2         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

some  infernal  powers  by  which  they  had  been  misled,  even 
as  their  ancestors  had  been  ensnared  by  heathen  divinities, 
and  that  therefore  He  charged  them,  in  the  figurative  speech 
of  Prophecy,1  with  having  prostituted  their  souls  with  lying, 
so  that  thereby  they  were  become  the  offspring  of  sin. 

"  We  are  not  born  of  fornication,"  they  interposed,  "  we 
have  but  one  Father,  —  God." 

"  If  God  were  your  Father,''  answered  Jesus,  "you  would 
love  Me,  because  I  am  born  of  God,  and  I  come  to  you  on 
His  behalf.  .  .  .  But  you  are  the  children  of  the  Devil,  and 
you  do  his  works.  He  has  been  a  murderer  from  the  be- 
ginning, and  he  has  never  rested  in  the  truth,  because  the 
truth  is  not  in  him.  Which  one  of  you  will  accuse  Me  of 
sin  ?  "  Then,  showing  the  falsehood  and  treachery  of  him 
who  is  a  liar  and  the  father  of  lies,  He  contrasted  with 
this  the  holiness  of  His  word,  and  tried  to  move  these  doc- 
tors, who  now  for  an  instant  had  believed  in  Him,  to  accept 
the  truth. 

But  henceforth  their  own  overweening  self-conceit,  cruelly 
wounded  by  His  words,  was  to  render  the  hearts  of  these 
sectaries  impervious  to  grace ;  they  repaid  Him  with  fierce 
abuses,  treating  Jesus  as  though  He  were  a  Samaritan  and 
possessed  by  the  Devil.2  The  Lord  endeavored  to  calm 
this  tempest  of  passion,  showing  them  that  His  only  end 
was  the  glory  of  the  Father,  and  promising  everlasting  life 
to  those  who  received  His  doctrine. 

"  Of  a  truth,  of  a  truth,  I  say  this  to  you,  if  any  one  keeps 
My  word  he  shall  never  know  death." 

In  this  the  Jews  only  saw  another  blasphemy. 

"  Now  we  kuow  well  enough  that  you  are  possessed  by 
the  Devil,"  they  said  ;  "  Abraham  is  dead,  and  the  Prophets, 
and  you  say :  '  If  any  one  keeps  My  word,  he  shall  never 
taste  death.'  Are  you  greater  than  our  father  Abraham  who 
is  dead  ?  and  the  Prophets  are  dead  also.  Who  do  you 
pretend  you  are  ?  " 

Once  again  the  Saviour  spoke  to  them  of  His  Union  with 
the  Father  Who  glorifies  Him,  "this  Father,"  He  added, 

1  I)eut.  xxxi.  16 ;  Is.  i.  21  ;  Ezech.  xvi.,  xx.  30,  etc 
8  Joho  viiL  48-59. 


THE  MAN  BORN  BLIND.  63 

"  Whom  you  call  your  God,  and  notwithstanding  you  know 
Him  not ;  and  if  I  told  you  that  I  know  Him  not,  I  should 
be  a  liar  like  unto  you,  but  I  do  know  Him  and  I  keep  His 
word.  Abraham  your  father  desired  earnestly  to  see  My 
day ;  he  hath  seen  it,  and  hath  rejoiced  thereat."  1 

"  What ! "  shouted  the  Jews,  "  you  have  not  lived  fifty 
years  as  yet,2  and  you  have  seen  Abraham ! " 

As  His  only  answer  to  this,  Jesus  proclaimed  Himself 
eternal  even  as  the  everlasting  Father  :  — 

"  Of  a  truth,  of  a  truth,  I  say  unto  you,  before  Abraham 
had  been  made,  I  am."  3 

At  these  words,  the  wrath  of  the  Jews  knew  no  further 
bounds ;  with  one  accord  they  sprang  for  a  heap  of  stones 
collected  for  the  work  on  the  Temple,4  intending  to  stone 
the  Nazarene  then  and  there.  But  Jesus,  profiting  by  the 
moment  of  confusion,  disappeared  in  the  crowd  and  departed 
without  suffering  any  hurt. 


II.    The  Man  Born  Blind. 

John  ix.  1-41  ;  x.  1-21. 

Once  without  the  Temple  walls  Jesus  regained  a  quarter 
of  the  town  where  all  was  quiet,  calm,  and  untroubled ; 
walking  unmolested  along  the  city  streets  He  saw  a  man 

1  By  faith,  he  had  seen  Him  during  his  mortal  life,  so  likewise  within 
the  confines  of  Limbo,  where  the  just  souls  awaited  the  general  Redemp- 
tion. Is  it  believable,  indeed,  that  at  a  time  when  Angel  voices  were 
quiring  the  Saviour's  birth,  to  Heaven  and  earth,  no  echo  should  have 
reached  the  Saints,  who  had  been  in  expectation  of  Him  all  down  the 
ages  ?    (See  Maldonatus,  in  Joan.  viii.  56. ) 

2  From  this  passage  some  scholars  have  wrongly  concluded  that  Jesus 
was  at  the  time  over  forty  yeais  of  age.  It  was  a  Jewish  idea  that  fifty 
was  the  age  at  which  a  man  attained  his  full  development.  Hence  these 
words  simply  signify  :  "  You  have  not  as  yet  come  to  the  age  of  maturity, 
and  you  have  seen  Abraham  !  " 

3  The  distinction  between  yeviaBai.  and  el/xl  sets  forth  the  Divinity  of 
Jesus  in  a  most  striking  light  :  ' '  Antequam  nasceretur  Abraham,  ego 
sum  "  (Erasmus,  in  loco). 

4  They  were  still  working  upon  some  accessory  parts  of  the  Temple, 
Which  was  not  completely  finished  until  64,  under  Herod  Agrippa  II. 


G4         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

blind  from  his  birth  who  was  begging,  ami  He  stopped 
near  him.1  The  disciples,  now  reassured  by  the  tranquillity 
of  the  Lord,  gathered  around  the  disabled  man. 

"  Master,"  they  asked,  "  who  has  sinned  ;  was  it  lie  or 
his  parents,  that  he  should  be  born  blind?"2 

The  belief  that  God  avenged  the  wickedness  of  the 
fathers  upon  the  children3  led  the  Jews  to  look  upon 
every  misfortune  as  a  chastisement  for  some  misdeed,  and 
to  ask  themselves  always  who  was  to  blame.4  Charity 
forbids  all  such  conjectures ;  it  was  neither  the  sins  of  the 
blind  man  nor  those  of  his  family  which  had  brought 
down  upon  him  this  affliction,  which  we  must  simply  re- 
gard as  one  of  those  trials  to  which  all  men  are  subject. 
This  particular  case  was  the  will  of  God,  and  inteuded  to 
be  an  instrument  whereby  He  chose  to  manifest  His 
glory.5 

The  night  of  death  was  drawing  fast  upon  the  Christ ; 
but  some  few  hours  of  daylight  were  still  left  to  Him,  and 
these  He  declared  He  would  use  "  in  doing  the  Works  of 
Him  who  sent  Him  ; "  and  wishing  likewise  to  refresh  the 
drooping  courage  of  His  Apostles  by  a  new  prodigy,  "  As 
long  as  I  am  in  the  world,"  he  said,  "  I  am  the  Light  of 
the  world." 

After  having  spoken  thus  He  spat  on  the  earth,  made 
clay  of  the  spittle,6  and  therewith  anointed  the  eyes  of  the 
blind  man. 

1  The  reading  given  by  the  received  text  (taken  from  the  Alexandrian 
Manuscript  and  the  Syriac  Versions),  clearly  indicates  that  the  healing 
of  the  blind  man  took  place  directly  upon  the  events  recorded  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter  :  .  .  .  duXdihu  8ia  jj.{<tov  avrCov  ko.1  Traprjyeu  oi/rws.  Kcu 
wap&ywv  eldev  .  .  .  kt\.  We  see  nothing  to  hinder  this  natural  inference, 
neither  the  calm  composure  of  Jesus,  marvellous  as  it  was  under  all  cir- 
cumstances, nor  the  perfect  confidence  of  the  disciples,  secure  in  the  pres- 
ence of  their  Master. 

2  John  ix.  2. 

3  Exod.  xx.  5. 

4  We  know  that  this  opinion  was  current  even  in  the  time  of  Job  ;  but 
that  admirable  plea  which  the  holy  man  uttered  against  his  friends,  and 
the  approbation  lie  received  from  Jehovah,  were  not  enough  to  destroy  this 
rooted  prejudice. 

5  John'ix.  3-7. 

6  Saliva  and  moist  earth,  in  ancient  times,  were  thought  to  possess 
healthgiving   properties  for  all    eye-troubles.      "  Lippitudines  niatutina 


THE  MAN  BORN  BLIND.  65 

"  Go,"  he  said  to  him,  "  wash  in  the  pool  of  Siloe." 

This  spring  bore  one  of  the  many  names  foreshadowing 
the  Messiah,  —  "  The  One  Sent,  the  Siloah,"  1  —  and  hence 
it  carried  with  it  a  promise  of  sweet  light  and  refreshing 
health  to  the  weak  and  suffering.  The  man  went  down 
thither,  washed,  with  perfect  trustfulness  in  the  Master's 
words,  and  returned  cured. 

His  eyes  for  the  first  time  in  his  life  sparkled  with  light, 
brightening  up  his  whole  countenance.  The  folk  who  lived 
in  the  neighborhood,  as  well  as  those  who  had  seen  him 
just  now  asking  an  alms,  were  loath  to  believe  him  the 
same  person. 

"  Is  not  this  the  man  who  sat  yonder  and  begged  ? "  they 
exclaimed.2 

"  Yes,  it  is  he,"  some  responded. 

"  No,"  others  insisted,  "  it  is  some  one  who  resembles 
him." 

But  he  told  them,  "  I  am  he." 

"  How  is  it  your  eyes  are  opened  ? "  they  demanded. 

"That  man,"  he  replied,  "whom  they  call  Jesus  made 
clay,3  anointed  my  eyes  with  it,  and  told  me :  '  Go  to  the 
pool  of  Siloe  and  wash.'  So  I  went,  I  washed,  and  I 
see  ! " 4 

"  Where  is  he  ? "  they  asked. 

"  I  do  not  know,"  was  his  reply. 

quotidie  inunctione  arceri"  (Pliny,  Historia  naturalis,  xxviii.  7  ;  compare 
Suetonius,  Vespasianus,  vii.). 

Si  tumor  insolitus  typho  se  tollat  inaui, 
Turgentes  oculos  vili  circumliue  cceno. 

Serenus  Salmonicus. 

This  remedy,  evidently,  had  not  the  power  of  restoring  sight  in  itself,  and 
in  the  Master's  mind  it  was  meant  to  serve  simply  as  the  symbol  best 
adapted  to  awaken  the  blind  man's  faith. 

1  njTB?.  We  have  given  more  about*  this  fountain  and  the  healing 
powers  ascribed  to  it  by  Tradition,  in  Appendix  "VII. 

2  John  ix.  8-12. 

3  He  does  not  mention  the  spittle,  which  he  was  unable  to  see  ;  he  speaks 
only  of  the  mud,  which  he  actually  felt  upon  his  eyelids  :  the  narrative  is 
scrupulously  exact  in  every  detail. 

4  'Af^Xet/'a  means  properly,  "I  recovered  my  sight."  "Nee  male  re- 
cipere  quis  dicitur,  quod  communiter  tributum  humanse  natural,  ipsi 
abfuit "  (Grotius,  in  Joan.  ix.  11). 

VOL.  II.  —  5 


66         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"Now  it  was  .1  Sabbath  day1  when  Jesus  made  this 
clay,  and  opened  the  eyes  of  the  Mind  man."2  He  had 
therefore  disregarded  the  dictates  of  the  Rabbis,  which 
forbade  the  application  of  any  remedies  upon  the  sacred 
day,  even  the  rubbing  of  an  aching  eye  with  saliva;3 
moreover,  it  was  just  at  the  moment  when  the  Pharisees 
were  quite  prepared  to  stone  Him  that  the  Christ  chose  to 
publicly  infringe  their  Rules.  The  witnesses  of  the  mar- 
vel hurried  away  to  inform  the  Sanhedrin  of  what  had 
just  happened.  The  Great  Council  held  no  regular  ses- 
sion upon  Sabbath  days,  but  the  incidents  which  had  been 
exciting  the  town  since  early  morning  were  enough  to  keep 
a  majority  of  its  members  gathered  together  in  the  porches.4 
The  blind  man,  whose  sight  had  been  restored,  was  brought 
before  them;  at  once  they  proceeded  to  investigate  his 
case,  and  questioned  him  as  to  how  the  thing  was  done. 
The  man  merely  repeated,  — 

"  He  put  clay  on  my  eyes,  and  I  washed,  and  I  see." 

This  story  disconcerted  and  puzzled  them.  There  were 
some  among  them  who  said  :  "  This  man  does  not  come  of 
God,  because  he  does  not  observe  the  Sabbath."  Others 
there  were,  however,  who  were  more  honest  and  direct; 
these  objected,  "How  can  a  sinner  do  these  wonders?" 
And  so  there  arose  a  dissension  among  them.  They  began 
anew  to  cross-question  the  man  who  had  been  blind. 

"  What  do  you  say  ? "  they  asked ;  "  who  do  you  say  this 
man  is  who  opened  your  eyes  ? " 

"  He  is  a  Prophet,"  quickly  came  the  answer. 

Noting  the  firmness  of  this  avowal  the  Sanhedrin-Coun- 

1  In  the  order  of  events  which  we  have  adopted,  the  eighth  day  of  the 
Festival,  this  year,  preceded  an  ordinary  Sabbath,  and  the  two  succeeding 
days  were  alike  hallowed  by  a  prescribed  season  of  repose. 

a  John  ix.  14-18. 

8  Maimonides,  Sabbath,  21  ;  Lightfoot,  Harm  Hcbraiccr,  in  Joan.  ix. 

4  As  the  Sanhedrin  did  not  sit  upon  Sabbath-days,  some  scholars  have 
held  that  the  man  who  had  been  healed  was  not  taken  before  this  tribunal 
until  the  day  following.  This  is  a  superfluous  hypothesis,  for  so  extraor- 
dinary an  occurrence  would  be  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  councillors 
without  a  moment's  delay,  and  they,  without  calling  a  regular  session, 
could  forthwith  summon  the  man,  examine  him  and  expel  him  from  the 
synagogue. 


THE  MAN  BORN  BLIND.  07 

cillors  foresaw  that  there  was  only  one  resort  left  them ; 
they  must  immediately  convict  this  man  of  being  an  im- 
postor ;  so  then  they  refused  to  believe  that  he  had  ever 
been  blind  and  had  recovered  his  sight  until  they  had 
summoned  his  parents  before  them. 

This  poor  couple,  of  as  humble  station  as  their  son,  ap- 
peared before  the  supreme  tribunal  in  much  terror;  but 
despite  their  distress  they  preserved  that  shrewdness  which 
is  a  characteristic  of  their  race.1 

"  Is  this  your  son  ? "  they  were  interrogated.  "  You  say 
that  he  was  born  blind ;  how  is  it  then  that  he  can  see 
now  ? " 

"  We  know  that  he  is  our  son,"  they  retorted,  "  and  that 
he  was  born  blind.  But  how  he  sees  now  we  do  not  know. 
Question  him  ;  he  is  of  age  ;  let  him  speak  for  himself." 

In  this  way  they  hoped  to  shield  themselves,  frightened 
as  they  were ;  for  the  Sanhedrin  had  before  this  publicly 
decreed  that  if  any  one  confessed  Jesus  to  be  the  Messiah 
he  should  be  excommunicated  and  driven  out  of  the 
synagogue.2 

The  Sanhedrin  had  no  alternative  now  but  to  recall  the 
man  born  blind,  and  to  adjure  him  to  contradict  his  first 
statement. 

"  Give  glory  to  God,"  3  they  urged ;  "  we  know  that  this 
man  is  a  sinner." 

"  If  he  is  a  sinner,"  he  returned,  "  I  know  nothing  about 
it ;  all  I  know  is  this,  that  I  was  blind  and  now  I  see." 

This  response  showed  them  that  they  had  to  do  with  a 
man  who  was  not  only  upright,  but  steadfast  and  of  a 
generous  soul,  and  that  they  would  not  be  able  to  brow- 
beat him  as  they  had  just  done  his  parents.  Not  knowing 
how  to  proceed,  or  perhaps  seeking  to  pick  some  flaw  in 
his  evidence,  they  recommenced  the  cross-examination. 

1  John  ix.  19-34. 

2  Here,  doubtless,  we  have  to  do  with  the  lighter  form  of  excommunica- 
tion, which  excluded  the  condemned  person  from  the  synagogue  for  thirty 
days  only. 

3  These  words  were  meant  as  an  ndjuration  whereby  the  guilty  man  was 
urged  to  repent,  to  take  shame  upon  himself  for  his  misdeeds,  and  so  render 
glory  to  God  (1  Kir.gs  vi.  5 ;  Jer.  xiii.  16  ;  Apoc.  xvi.  9). 


(58        THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  What  was  it  he  did  to  you  ? "  they  asked ;  "  how  did 
he  open  your  eyes  ? "  But  their  mau  was  tired  with  these 
useless  repetitions. 

"  I  have  explained  it  to  you,  and  you  have  heard  it.1 
Why  do  you  want  to  hear  it  again  ?  Do  you  too  wish  to 
become  his  disciples  ?  " 

Smarting  under  this  irony  they  lost  self-control,  and 
loaded  him  with  taunts. 

"  You  yourself  may  be  his  disciple,"  they  exclaimed ; 
u  but  for  us,  we  are  the  disciples  of  Moses.  We  know 
that  God  has  spoken  to  Moses,  but  as  for  this  fellow  we 
do  not  know  where  he  may  come  from." 

The  man  born  blind,  far  from  being  terrified,  only  began 
to  banter  them  more  boldly. 

"  It  is  really  astonishing,"  he  said,  "  that  you  should  not 
know  where  he  comes  from,  and,  nevertheless,  he  has 
opened  my  eyes.  Now  we  know  that  God  does  not 
hearken  to  sinners,  but  if  any  one  honors  Him  and  does 
His  will  He  hears  him.  It  was  never  yet  heard  tell  that 
any  one  opened  the  eyes  of  a  man  born  blind.  So  if  this 
man  were  not  from  God  he  could  do  nothing." 

At  these  words  the  Sanhedrin  rose  in  mighty  indigna- 
tion ;  a  beggar  to  dare  hold  up  his  head  before  the  Masters 
of  Israel ! 

"  You  are  nothing  but  a  mass  of  sins,"  they  cried,  "and 
do  you  propose  to  teach  us!"  Then  they  caught  hold  of 
him,  and  had  him  driven  forth  from  the  Synagogue. 

This  outrage  put  him  in  the  same  category  with  his 
Benefactor,  for  if  Jesus  preached  in  the  synagogues  no 
longer  it  was  probably  because  he  was  excluded  therefrom 
by  an  excommunication  emanating  from  the  Sanhedrin. 
The  divine  Master  could  not  forget  this  the  first  Confessor 
persecuted  for  His  holy  cause.  He  sought  him  out,  and 
having  found  him, — 

"  Do  you  believe  in  the  Son  of  God  ? "  He  said  to 
him.2 

1  In  the  Greek  we  find  this  reading  :  "  And  you  have  not  listened  :  " 
Kal  ovk  ■qKO'LKTa.Te.     We  have  given  the  Vulgate  translation  above. 
*  John  ix.  35-41. 


THE  GOOD  SHEPHERD.  69 

"  Who  is  He,  Lord,"  answered  the  man  born  blind,  "  so 
that  I  may  believe  in  Him  ? " 

"  You  have  seen  Him,"  Jesus  said  to  him,  "  and  it  is  He 
Who  is  speaking  to  you." 

"  I  believe,  Lord  ! "  said  the  beggar,  and  falling  down  he 
adored  Him. 

Jesus  hastened  to  exalt  this  strong  living  faith  as  the 
triumph  of  that  light  which  He  had  brought  into  the 
world,  manifesting  itself  as  mighty  to  enlighten  the  lowly 
as  it  wTas  to  dazzle  and  blind  the  proud ;  this  the  Master 
proclaimed  so  powerfully  that  some  Pharisees  who  had 
mixed  with  the  crowd  felt  themselves  moved  by  these 
tokens  of  authority. 

"  Are  we  blind  also  ?  "  they  said. 

Jesus  answered  them  that  no  one  is  held  responsible  for 
being  born  in  darkness ;  the  wrong  consists  in  obstinately 
persisting  therein. 

"  If  you  were  blind,"  He  told  them,  "  you  would  have 
no  sin,  but  you  say,  '  We  see ! '  Therefore  your  sin 
remaineth." 

But  these  haughty  sectaries  did  not  deserve  to  engage 
the  Lord's  attention  longer ;  turning  from  them  toward  the 
beggar  He  began  by  means  of  a  Parable  to  comfort  him  for 
having  been  put  outside  the  synagogue. 

In  this  new  similitude  the  Master  pictured  a  scene 
familiar  to  every  Jew's  memory,  reminding  them  of  one 
of  those  sheep-folds  which  to  this  day  people  the  lonely 
wilds  of  Juda.1  Indeed,  they  still  preserve  the  same  gen- 
eral features.  A  massive  wall  of  stone  encircles  them,  and 
this  is  crowned  with  clumps  of  thorn-bushes ;  herein  the 
shepherd  shuts  himself  up  with  his  flock  at  night-fall,  for 
in  the  shadows  lurk  many  and  various  foes.  The  wolf 
prowls  round  about,  sometimes  a  panther  at  a  bound  over- 
leaps the  enclosure,  or  some  robber  of  the  night,  finding 
the  narrow  gate  fast  barred,  climbs  up  and  creeps  along 
the  wall.  But  the  shepherd  is  watching ;  he  wards  off  all 
danger ;  and,  with  the  dawning  light,  taking  up  his  crooked 
staff  he  is  the  first  to  leave  their  little  fortress;  one  by 

1  John  ix.  1-18. 


70         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

one  he  counts  his  fleecy  charge,  then  leads  the  way  toward 
the  fresh  pastures,  his  gentle  company  gambolling  around 
him  as  he  walks.  Every  now  and  again  he  utters  a  shrill 
call,  and  then  the  scattered  sheep  huddle  panting  about 
his  feet;  but  let  a  stranger's  voice  break  the  stillness,  at 
once  all  stop  short,  affrighted,  with  heads  uplifted,  then 
scamper  away,  "  for  they  know  not  the  voice  of  the 
stranger." 

After  this  fashion  Jesus  traced  the  likeness  of  the 
Church,  that  fold  whose  Door  is  the  Christ,  whereof  no  one 
deserves  to  be  called  a  pastor  if  he  enters  not  in  the  name 
of  Jesus,  and  does  not  hold  commission  from  Him.  Many 
false  shepherds  had  come  before  Him,  who  had  misled 
the  flock  of  God's  people,  yet  whatever  semblance  of  truth 
they  might  assume  they  were  all,  whether  priests  or 
Scribes  or  Pharisees,  nothing  less  than  robbers,  creeping  in 
to  pillage  and  destroy ;  or  at  the  best,  wretched  hirelings, 
who  were  at  little  pains  for  the  safety  of  the  sheep,  but 
took  to  flight  at  sight  of  the  wolf,  leaving  the  flock  to  be 
scattered  and  killed.  Then  said  Jesus,  "  I  am  the  Good 
Shepherd ;  I  know  My  sheep  and  My  sheep  know  Me.  .  .  . 
I  am  come  that  they  may  have  life  more  abundantly." 

Such  was  the  Stronghold  which  Jesus  flung  open  wide 
to  receive  this  sturdy,  humble  fellow  who  had  just  been 
hunted  out  of  the  synagogue. 

But  now  his  glance  swept  a  wider  prospect,  and  straight- 
way there  arose  that  ever  present  thought  of  the  Gentiles, 
cut  off  from  any  community  with  the  Jewish  race,  and-  he 
added:  "Other  sheep  I  have  which  are  not  of  this  fold; 
these  too  I  must  bring;  they  shall  hear  My  voice,  and 
there  shall  be  one  only  Fold  and  one  only  Shepherd." 

"  I  am  the  Good  Shepherd,"  said  He  again ;  "  the  good 
shepherd  gives  his  life  for  his  sheep;"  and  the  Bloody 
Sacrifice  which  was  ever  uppermost  in  his  thoughts  forth- 
with engrossed  His  attention.  He  spoke  of  it  to  the 
crowds,  openly  announcing  "  that  no  one  would  rob  Him 
of  His  life,  but  that  He  gave  it  up  of  Himself,  and  would 
take  it  up  again  by  His  own  inherent  power."  So  then 
He  was  to  die  in  the  fulness  of  sacrifice,  "  that  He  might 


THE  MAN  BORN  BLIND.  71 

obey  His  Father,  and  it  is  for  this  that  His  Father  loveth 
Him  "  with  an  almighty,  infinite  love. 

These  last  words  left  the  people  divided  in  feeling. 
Thus  on  the  evening  of  a  day  when  so  much  of  malice 
had  worked  its  will  against  Him,  and  so  many  hands  had 
been  uplifted  to  stone  Him,  all  throughout  Jerusalem  one 
.heard  nothing  but  whispered  slanders  mingling  with  the 
more  favorable  voices.1 

"He  is  possessed,"  said  some,  "he  is  a  madman,  why 
listen  to  him  any  longer  ?  " 

"  These  are  not  the  words  of  one  possessed,"  others  re- 
plied, "and  besides,  does  the  Devil  restore  sight  to  men 
born  blind  ? " 

Availing  Himself  of  this  division  in  public  opinion,  Jesus 
departed  from  Jerusalem  immediately,  for  the  hatred  of  the 
Sanhedrin  had  waxed  too  violent  for  Him  to  withstand  it 
any  longer. 

1  John  x.  19-21. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   SEVENTY-TWO  DISCIPLES. 

Luke  x.  1-42  ;  Matt.  xi.  20-30. 

His  Divinity  in  no  way  weakened  the  force  of  those 
human  feelings  and  sympathies  which  always  filled  the 
Heart  of  Jesus ;  like  us,  He  delighted  to  revisit  whatever 
He  had  loved  on  earth,  His  home,  His  country,  the  places 
which  had  witnessed  His  labors  and  His  griefs.  By  every 
kindred  title,  then,  Galilee  was  so  much  endeared  to  Him 
that  no  ingratitude  on  the  part  of  its  people  could  wean 
Him  from  such  longings  to  return.  Hence  it  was  thither- 
wards He  directed  His  steps  upon  leaving  Jerusalem.1 
But  He  was  to  encounter  the  same  coldness  as  before  the 
Feast ;  only  the  Apostles  and  a  little  bevy  of  disciples  per- 
severed devotedly  at  His  side.  Thus  forsaken,  the  Lord 
was  constrained  to  bear  the  Good  Tidings  elsewhere;  so 
choosing  seventy-two  Galileans  2  who  had  remained  faith- 

1  As  we  have  observed  elsewhere  (Appendix  IX.),  the  malediction 
uttered  over  Capharnaura  and  the  sister-cities,  which  S.  Luke  recites  as 
occurring  between  the  mission  of  the  seventy  disciples  and  their  return, 
implies  that  Jesus  was  then  in  that  neighborhood.  Less  attentive  to  the 
order  of  time  than  S.  Luke,  S.  Matthew  connects  these  anathemas  with 
the  discourse  which  the  Saviour  addressed  to  the  Jews  of  Nairn  in  the 
preceding  year,  after  the  departure  of  John  Baptist's  envoys  (Matt.  xi. 
20-24). 

2  We  cannot  be  absolutely  certain  as  to  their  number,  which  the  Fathers 
always  considered  as  having  a  symbolical  meaning:  it  was  increased  to 
seventy-two  (said  some),  in  memory  of  the  first  council  of  Israel  (see  Vol.  I. 
p.  5);  others  say  it  was  seventy,  a  number  hallowed  by  Jewish  traditions 
as  that  of  the  nations  which  were  separated  at  the  foot  of  the  Tower  of 
Babel  (Lightfoot,  Horoe  Hebraiccc,  in  Joan.  vii.  37).  The  Alexandrian 
Manuscript,  the  Sinaitic,  the  Codex  Ephrsemi,  the  Peshito,  and  many 
Fathers  have  "  seventy  ;"  on  the  other  side  are  the  MSS.  of  the  Vatican 
and  Beza,  the  Vulgate,  the  Syriac  of  Cureton  and  quite  as  many  Fathers, 
who  all  adopt  the  other  reading,  "seventy-two." 


THE  SEVENTY-TWO  DISCIPLES.  73 

ful  to  Him,  He  deputed  them  to  go  before  Him  "  into  every 
town  and  into  every  place  whither  He  was  to  come." 1 

Saint  Luke  notes  the  fact  that  these  newly  elect  were 
not  the  same  as  the  Twelve  first  chosen  ;  so,  too,  their  Mis- 
sion was  different,  and  this  the  Master  indicates  by  the 
instructions  which  He  addressed  to  them,  for,  out  of  all  the 
advice  formerly  given  the  Apostles,  Jesus  here  repeated,  for 
the  benefit  of  the  seventy-two  disciples,  only  such  as  would 
presuppose  a  ministry  of  short  duration. 

For  them  it  was  to  be  limited  to  a  few  days'  labor  in 
the  vast  harvest  fields.  They  need  have  no  anxiety  for  the 
future,  but  straightway  start  forth,  without  purse,  without 
wallet,  shod  with  only  such  footwear  as  they  had  on ;  not 
wasting  time  along  the  wayside  in  overloug  greetings,  but 
keeping  steadfastly  to  their  appointed  end,  and,  once  ar- 
rived at  the  city  whither  He  sent  them,  there  fulfil  His 
commissions  without  delay. 

"  Do  not  pass  from  house  to  house,"  so  said  the  Lord, 
"  enter  into  the  first  one  which  opens  to  receive  you,  and 
there  remain,  eating  and  drinking  whatever  they  shall  set 
before  you." 

For  one  accustomed  to  the  ceremonious  forms  observed 
by  the  Orientals,  these  precepts  are  far  from  surprising. 
To-day,  when  any  stranger  enters  an  Arabian  village,  invi- 
tations are  proffered  him  on  every  hand,  and  everybody 
presses  him  to  pass  from  one  friendly  board  to  another. 
Jesus  warned  them  not  to  waste  the  precious  hours  in  such 
outward  shows  of  friendliness ;  these  His  Evangelists  were 
not  commissioned  to  take  part  in  worldly  feastings,  but 
rather  to  recall  men  to  repentance,  to  heal  the  sick,  to  pre- 
pare the  ways  of  the  Lord,  and  to  publish  far  and  wide  the 
Kingdom  of  God.    If  any  city  refused  to  harbor  them,  He 

1  Luke  x.  1-12.  Some  critics  would  have  it  that  Jesus  chose  the 
seventy-two  disciples  while  He  was  traversing  Samaria,  on  His  way  to  the 
Feast  of  the  Tabernacles  (John  vii.  2-10).  But  it  is  hardly  probable  that 
during  this  hasty  and  secret  journey  Jesus  would  have  kept  so  great  a  num- 
ber of  disciples  about  Him,  or  that  He  would  have  taken  this  occasion  to 
give  them  a  solemn  mission.  Undoubtedly  it  was  after  the  Feast,  and 
when  returned  to  Galilee,  that  He  commissioned  them  to  go  through  the 
lands  lying  over  beyond  the  Jordan. 


74         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

bade  them  go  into  the  public  squares,  and  tell  the  rebel- 
lious city :  "  Against  you  we  shake  off  even  the  dust  of 
your  town  which  has  cleaved  to  our  feet.  Yet  know  ye 
this,  the  Kingdom  of  God  is  nigh!"  "I  say  unto  you," 
added  the  Lord,  "in  the  day  of  judgment,  Sodom  shall  be 
treated  more  leniently  than  that  city." 

Obedient  to  the  orders  which  they  had  received,  the  dis- 
ciples set  out  two  by  two,  while  Jesus  lingered  upon  the 
shores  of  the  lake.1  As  aforetime,  so  now  the  Saviour  wan- 
dered through  this  border-country  but  not  with  the  same 
results,  for  He  found  His  words  resented  and  slighted,  Him- 
self left  in  solitude,  despised  and  neglected,  while  through 
this  land  so  loaded  with  tokens  of  His  loving  kindness  He 
must  needs  wend  His  weary  way  as  though  He  were  an 
alien  and  a  stranger.  Cut  to  the  heart  by  such  ungrateful- 
ness, He  turned  away  from  these  cities  of  the  Lake,  aud 
spoke  words  of  bitterest  rebuke,  forasmuch  as  He  had  loved 
them  better  than  all  the  rest :  — 

"  Woe  to  thee,  Chorozain !  Woe  to  thee,  Bethsaida !  for 
if  Tyre  and  Sidon  had  seen  the  miracles  which  have  been 
wrought  in  you,  they  would  have  long  ago  done  penance  in 
sackcloth  and  ashes.  But  Tyre  and  Sidon  shall  be  treated 
more  mercifully  than  you  in  the  Day  of  Judgment.  And 
thou  Capharnaum,  which  art  exalted  unto  Heaven,  thou 
shalt  be  thrust  down  even  unto  Hell."  2 

Departing  from  the  lakeside,  Jesus  took  the  road  going 

1  Luke  x.  1. 

2  Luke  x.  13-15.  Thirty  years  later,  the  Roman  legions  overran  Gali- 
lee, visiting  town  after  town  with  devastation  and  carnage.  Fifteen 
thousand  Jews  were  massacred  at  Jaffa,  forty  thousand  at  Jotapata,  their 
women-folk  sold  or  put  to  the  sword.  Chorozain,  Bethsaida,  <  lapharnaum, 
Tiberias  were  thereafter  but  a  heap  of  silent  ruins ,  the  last  and  mightiest 
bulwark  fell  in  its  turn  ;  the  vanquished  people  were  left  no  other  refuge 
besides  their  fishing-barks  and  the  deep  waters  of  the  lake.  Even  there 
they  were  pursued  by  the  galleys  of  Koine,  and  perished  by  the  hundreds, 
shattered  and  sunk  in  the  midst  of  the  waves,  beaten  down  when  their 
hands  clutched  at  the  vessel-sides  of  the  foe  ;  the  strongest  reached  the 
banks  only  to  be  hacked  to  death  by  the  legionaries.  Collecting  the 
wretched  remnant  that  survived  the  slaughter,  Vespasian  sent  six  thou- 
sand to  Nero,  to  open  up  the  Isthmus  of  Corinth  ;  thirty  thousand  were 
sold  ;  twelve  hundred  old  men,  as  fit  for  no  work,  were  butchered  in  the 
stadium  of  Tiberias.     (See  Josephus,  Bellum  Judalcum,  lib.  iii. ) 


TEE  SEVENTY-TWO  DISCIPLES.  75 

to  Perea,  so  as  to  rejoin  His  disciples  there.  On  the  way, 
He  saw  them  returning  to  Him  overflowing  with  joy.  In 
giving  them  their  commission  the  Master  had  only  spoken 
of  the  clangers  ahead,  of  wolves  ravening  about  their  path, 
of  doors  barred  and  cities  closed  against  their  approach ; 
He  had  bestowed  on  them  no  other  powers  beside  that  one 
of  curing  the  sick,  and  lo !  at  the  mere  sound  of  His  Name 
all  things  yielded  to  them  : 

"  Master,"  they  cried,  "  even  the  devils  are  subject  to  us 
in  your  Name." 

Jesus  did  not  disdain  to  share  their  gladness,  but  it  was 
that  He  might  lift  them  up  to  a  conception  of  nobler  things. 

Surely  there  was  nothing  surprising  in  that  His  Name 
should  prove  victorious  over  the  hosts  of  Hell,  for,  in  the 
very  first  hour  of  revolt,  the  guilty  Angel  had  been  brought 
face  to  face  with  the  eternal  Son  of  the  Father,  nor  even 
then  could  he  brook  His  glance,  but  fell  from  the  heavenly 
heights  like  a  flashing  thunderbolt.1  The  Word  when  once 
incarnated  had  but  increased  the  awful  depth  of  this  fall 
and  stripped  the  Prince  of  Darkness  of  his  last  weapons. 
Using  the  words  of  the  Psalmist,2  the  Apostles  were  to 
"  tread  upon  the  lion  and  the  adder ;  the  young  lion  and 
the  dragon  they  should  trample  under  their  feet."  Poison, 
venom,  raging  beasts,  all  baneful  things  of  this  world,  the 
consequences  of  sin  and  the  strength  of  Satan,  had  now 
escaped  his  foul  dominion ;  the  strength  of  the  enemy  had 
been  deflowered,  and  hereafter  nothing  could  harm  the  dis- 
ciples of  Jesus. 

"  Nevertheless,"  added  the  Master,  "  do  not  rejoice  in  this 
that  the  evil  spirits  are  subject  to  you,  but  rejoice  in  this 
that  your  names  are  written  in  Heaven."  3 

1  Luke  x.  18-20.  Some  Fathers  understand  these  words  in  another 
sense,  and  regard  them  as  a  warning  given  the  disciples  not  to  let  this 
power  over  the  hosts  of  Hell  puff  them  up  with  pride.  Lucifer  fell  from  a 
throne  of  light  into  an  abyss  of  darkness ;  such  shall  be  your  fall  if  you 
Imitate  his  pride. 

2  Ps.  xci.  13. 

8  To  be  written  in  the  heavens,  is  to  belong  to  God  and  to  heavenly 
things  ;  to  be  written  on  earth,  is  to  be  earthbound  in  thought  and  feel- 
ing ;  according  to  Jeremy's  explanation  of  the  Hebraic  imagery,  it  is  to 
"forsake  God,  the  Fountain  of  living  waters"  (Jer.  xviL  131. 


76        THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Saying  these  words,  the  Saviour,  rapt  in  ecstasy,  was 
absorbed  in  the  Bosom  of  God. 

'•'  I  praise  Thee,  0  Father,"  He  said,1  "  Lord  of  Heaven 
and  earth,  for  that  Thou  hast  hidden  these  things  from  the 
wise  and  prudent,  and  that  Thou  hast  revealed  them  unto 
little  ones.  Yea,  Father,  thus  it  is  because  such  hath  been 
Thy  will.  All  things  have  been  delivered  Me  by  My 
Father,  and  no  one  knoweth  Who  the  Son  is,  save  the 
Father,  and  Who  the  Father  is,  save  the  Son,  and  he  to 
whom  it  hath  pleased  the  Son  to  reveal  Him."2 

What  had  called  forth  these  rapturous  words,  whose  like 
have  been  but  seldom  heard  from  Jesus'  lips  since  the  day 
His  native  land  disowned  Him  ?  Evidently  it  was  the  eager 
welcome  which  those  towns  had  given  the  seventy-two  dis- 
ciples, going  before  Him  to  announce  His  advent.  Over- 
flowing with  the  strong  feelings  inspired  by  His  prayer,  the 
Saviour  bespoke  His  disciples:3  — 

"Come  unto  Me  all  you  that  have  labored  and  are 
weighed  down  with  any  trouble  and  I  will  ease  your  bur- 
thens. Take  My  yoke  upon  you,  and  learn  that  I  am  meek 
and  lowly  of  heart,  and  you  shall  find,"  in  following  Me, 
"  rest  for  your  souls.  For  My  yoke  is  easy  and  My  burthen 
light." 

Uttering  this  gracious  invitation  He  broke  forth  with 
words  of  great  gladness:4  — 

1  Luke  x.  21,  22  ;  Matt.  xi.  25-27. 

2  This  fashion  of  speaking,  so  very  like  that  which  S.  John  attributes 
to  the  Saviour,  forms  a  kind  of  link  between  the  long  discourses  of  the 
Fourth  Gospel,  and  the  simpler  conversations  generally  recorded  by  the 
synoptical  writers.  Doubtless  when  He  prayed  to  His  Father,  Jesus  used 
those  solemn  expressions  (John  xvii.)  which,  because  so  long  and  deeply 
pondered  by  S.  John,  became  the  habitual  language  of  that  Evangelist. 
We  recognize  this  manner  of  speech  in  the  Prologue  of  his  Gospel,  in  his 
Epistles,  in  the  discourses  of  Jesus,  as  well  as  in  those  of  John  Baptist. 
"  Ratio  scribendi  S.  Joannis  in  sermonibua  Jesu  et  in  sua  epistola  prima 
adeo  concordat,  ut  vel  discipulus  modum  loquendi  Magistri  sui  sibi  omninc 
proprinm  fecerit,  vel  Magistri  sermones  suo  proprio  modo  expresserit.  Hoc 
alteram  et  in  se  est  probabilius  et  confirmatur  ex  dicendi  similitudine  inter 
evangelistam  et  Joannem  Baptistam  iis  in  locis  ubi  Precursor  loquens  indu- 
citur  (of.  iii.  31-36,  et  iii.  11,  15,  18,  etc.)."  (Corluy,  Commcntarius  in 
Evangelium  S.  Joannis,  p.  16.     Editio  altera. ) 

3  Matt,  xi.  28-30. 
i  Luke  x.  23,  24. 


THE   GOOD  SAMARITAN.  77 

u  Happy  eyes  which  see  that  which  you  see !  I  say  to 
you  many  Prophets  and  kings  have  desired  to  see  that 
which  you  see  and  have  not  seen  it,  and  to  hear  that  which 
you  hear  and  have  not  heard  it." 

This  joy  was  to  be  marred  very  shortly.  There  was  no 
region  so  secluded  that  the  Scribes  could  not  find  their  way 
thither ;  one  of  them  now  pushed  forward  trying  to  tempt 
Jesus. 

"  Master,"  said  he,  "  what  shall  I  do  to  possess  eternal 
life  ?  "  1 

The  Lord  saw  his  design  at  a  glance,  He  referred  this 
lawyer  to  his  authorities  and  asked  him :  — 

"  What  do  you  read  there  ? " 

Long  beforehand  Moses  had  revealed  the  two  great  pre- 
cepts of  a  Christian  life.2  This  Jew  could  only  repeat  what 
from  century  to  century  the  Prophets  and  Doctors  had 
taught  to  Israel :  — 

"  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  thy  whole 
heart,  with  thy  whole  soul,  with  all  thy  strength  and  with 
all  thy  mind,  and  thy  neighbor  as  thyself." 

"  You  have  answered  aright,"  Jesus  said  to  him ;  "  do  this 
and  you  shall  live." 

Words  which  were  not  likely  to  satisfy  the  Scribe,  for 
they  humiliated  him  by  exposing  the  thoughtlessness  of  his 
query,  and  evidenced  that  Jesus  was  better  versed  in  the 
Law  than  himself.  He  made  shift  to  quibble  and  suggest 
difficulties. 

"  And  who  is  my  neighbor  ? "  he  objected. 

The  hatred  which  the  Jews  cherished  against  foreigners 
would  have  prevented  the  Lord  from  extorting  any  right- 
eous response  from  the  mouth  of  such  an  adversary ;  He 
therefore  turned  for  an  answer  to  the  very  places  lying 
round  about  them. 

At  this  time  the  divine  Master  was  traversing  the  moun- 
tainous stretch  of  country  which  extends  from  Jericho  to 
Jerusalem.  The  track  which  He  was  following,  justly 
named  "the  Highway  of  Blood,"3  climbs  up  athwart  the 

1  Luke  x.  25-37.  2  Deut.  vi.  5  ;  Lev.  xix.  18. 

3  "  Adommiui"  (S.  Jerome,  De  locis  Hebrxis). 


78         THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

hills  whose  white  crests  gleam  on  either  hand  like  sea- 
waves  beaten  into  froth  by  the  fierce  winds.  While  pass- 
ing through  this  wilderness  the  wayfarer  is  often  attacked 
by  the  Bedouins,  and  left  there  wounded  and  in  instant 
peril  of  death  unless  some  charitable  person  happens  that 
way  and  lends  him  his  assistance. 

The  Lord  set  one  of  these  oft-told  adventures  in  the  form 
of  a  Parable;  how  a  man  had  fallen  into  the  brigands' 
clutches,  who  proceeded  to  plunder  his  goods,  covered  him 
with  wounds  and  left  him  lying  in  the  road  half-dead. 
Between  the  Holy  City  and  Jericho  (which  is  a  city  of  the 
priesthood),  there  are  always  many  Levites  going  and  com- 
ing.1 It  so  chanced  that  a  priest,  on  his  way  down  from 
Jerusalem,  noticed  the  wounded  man ;  taking  the  other 
side  of  the  road2  he  continued  on  his  journey.  A  Levite 
came  next;  he  stopped,  looked  at3  the  bleeding  body,  and 
like  the  priest  went  his  way.  Yet  a  third  traveller  came 
after  them,  —  the  offspring  of  a  race  which  Israel  held  ac- 
cursed; he  was  notwithstanding  a  good  Samaritan,  and  a 
worthy  type  of  the  Saviour.  At  sight  of  the  wounded  man 
he  was  touched  with  compassion,  drew  nigh  to  him,  bound 
up  his  wounds,  pouring  in  oil  and  wine  ;4  then  he  put  him 
on  his  horse,  brought  him  to  an  inn  and  there  tended  him. 
The  next  morning  he  took  two  denarii 5  from  his  purse  and 
giving  them  to  their  host :  "  Take  care  of  him,"  he  said,  "  and 
whatever  you  spend  beside,  I  will  repay  on  my  return." 

"  Which  one  of  these  three,"  Jesus  asked,  "  would  seem 
to  you  to  be  the  neighbor  of  the  man  that  fell  into  the 
robbers'  hands  ? " 

1  According  to  the  Talmud,  twelve  thousand  Levites  had  their  residence 
in  Jericho. 

2  'XvTiiraprfKOev  (Luke  x.  31). 
8'E\0uh»  ko.1  idtbv  (Luke  x.  32). 

4  Oil  and  wine — symbols  for  the  sweetness  and  strength  of  grace  — 
were  the  remedies  used  hy  the  ancients  for  bathing  wounds  and  soothing 
any  pain  (Pliny,  Historia  naturalis,  xxxi.  47). 

5  The  denarius  (something  about  twenty  cents  in  our  money)  was  the 
daily  pay  of  a  Roman  soldier  (Tacitus,  Annates,  i.  17),  and  the  usual  wage 
of  any  workman  (Matt.  xx.  2).  It  appears  that  the  Samaritan  intended  to 
return  by  the  same  place  two  days  later,  and  so  paid  the  innkeeper  for  his 
care  and  lodging  for  the  period  intervening. 


MARY  AND  MARTHA.  79 

There  was  no  room  left  him  for  hesitating ;  albeit  the 
Scribe  was  loath  to  pronounce  even  the  name  Samaritan, 
saying  reluctantly :  — 

"  It  would  be  he  who  took  compassion  on  him." 

Jesus  had  nothing  more  to  add ;  by  one  of  those  inno- 
cent stratagems  in  which  Orientals  take  so  much  delight, 
He  had  constrained  His  adversary  to  explain  the  nature  of 
true  charity. 

"Go,"  He  said  to  the  discomfited  Doctor  of  Laws,  "go 
and  do  you  likewise." 

Although  the  high-road  which  Jesus  was  now  following- 
leads  to  Jerusalem,  He  did  not,  however,  push  on  as  far  as 
the  town.  Saint  Luke  shows  us  that  He  rested  at  Bethany,1 
a  village  built  upon  the  highlands  of  Juda,  and  only  sepa- 
rated from  the  Holy  City  by  the  Mount  of  Olives.2  In  this 
small  town  there  lived  a  family  that  Jesus  loved,  Lazarus 
with  his  two  sisters,  Martha  and  Mary.  The  first  had  always 
bided  in  maiden  retirement  within  her  brother's  house  ;  the 
second  was  she  who  had  once  been  wofully  famous  under 
that  name  of  the  Magdalene,  the  wanton  woman  :  but  now 
redeemed,  restored  by  the  Christ  to  the  love  of  her  own 
home-circle.  Was  it  this  unhoped  for  grace  which  had 
knit  so  firm  a  bond  of  friendship  betwixt  Jesus  and  the 
little  household  at  Bethany  ?  And  may  we  believe  that 
Lazarus  was  the  charitable  Eabbi  of  whom  the  Talmud 
speaks  ?  3  Like  ISTicodemus  and  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  had 
he  listened  to  Jesus  speaking  before  the  Sanhedrin  and 
there  recognized  in  Him  the  Messiah?  All  these  con- 
jectures are  equally  plausible,  since  the  Evangelists  do  not 
tell  us  how  Lazarus  entered  the  Kingdom  of  the  Christ ; 
all  that  they  inform  us  is  that  he  was  of  high  station,  a 
friend  of  Jesus,  and  blest  in  being  allowed  to  offer  Him 
hospitality.  As  it  chanced  on  this  day,  the  Master  had  not 
been  expected  at  Bethany,  for  His  arrival  evidently  put  the 

i  Luke  x.  38-42. 

2  S.  John,  in  recounting  the  raising  of  Lazarus,  notes  that  the  distance 
between  Bethany  and  Jerusalem  was  fifteen  stadia  (John  xi.  18).  The 
stadium  was  about  one  hundred  and  eighty  metres. 

3  Peak,  f.  21,  2. 


SO        THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

■whole  house  in  commotion.  Martha  especially  Mas  untir- 
ing in  her  efforts  to  procure  everything  for  their  comfort, 
watching  keenly  lest  anything  should  be  lacking.  Mary, 
in  a  calmer  mood,  had  seated  herself  at  the  feet  of  Jesus, 
listening  to  His  words,  drinking  deep  draughts  from  the 
Well-spring  of  life.  Martha  was  observing  her,  and  her 
jealousy  was  at  last  aroused ;  addressing  Jesus,  she  asked 
Him:  — 

"  Lord,  do  you  not  see  that  my  sister  leaves  me  to  serve 
alone  ?     Bid  her,  then,  to  help  me." 

"Martha,  Martha,"  Jesus  answered  her,  "you  harass 
yourself  and  worry  about  many  things ; 1  yet  there  is  one 
thing  needful;  Mary  has  chosen  the  better  part ;  it  shall 
not  be  taken  away  from  her." 

Not  for  having  done  too  much  for  Him  did  the  Master 
blame  His  hostess,  but  for  letting  herself  be  diverted 
from  Him  by  external  cares.  Happier  far  is  that  friend 
of  the  Christ  who  is  altogether  absorbed  in  Him !  Blest 
indeed  are  those  contemplative  souls,  who,  after  her  ex- 
ample, no  longer  hear  the  noise  and  tumult  of  the  world, 
safe  within  their  cpiiet  cloisters.  Theirs  is  the  one  thing 
needful,  the  soul  that  has  found  peace  in  love ;  it  is  theirs 
to  taste  fully  the  sweetness  of  this  saying  of  the  Master: 
"  Mary  hath  chosen  the  best  part,  which  shall  not  be  taken 
away  from  her." 

1  Me/st^as  denotes  trouble  and  inward  anxieties  ;  6opvj3d£ri,  outward 
agitation.  The  curious  reading  preserved  by  some  of  the  Versions  and 
certain  very  old  MSS.  (those  of  Sinai,  the  Vatican,  the  Codex  Ephrsemi, 
etc.),  oklywv  8t  icrrl  xpf'a  tf  evos,  seems  to  indicate  that  .Tesus,  alluding  to 
the  preparations  for  the  repast,  told  Martha  that  a  few  meats,  or  even  one, 
would  suffice.  No  doubt,  however,  His  mind  was  dwelling  upon  higher 
thoughts,  for  the  meed  of  praise  bestowed  upon  Mary  is  evidently  to  be 
conceived  in  a  spiritual  sense  :  "Mary  has  chosen  the  best  part,  which 
shall  not  be  taken  away  from  her." 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  PHARISEES  OF   PEREA. 


I.     The  Lord's  Prayer.  —  The  two  Blind  Men.  —  The 
Dumb  Devil.  —  The  Sign  from  on  High. 

Luke  ix.  1-36  ;  Matt.  ix.  27-34  ;  xii.  38-45. 

On  leaving  Bethany  Jesus  again  crossed  over  the  Jordan 
in  order  to  evangelize  the  mountainous  country  of  Galaad, 
then  under  the  rule  of  Herod  Antipas,  and  known  by  the 
name  of  Perea.1  He  is  in  some  lonely  locality  of  this 
region  when  Saint  Luke  proceeds  with  his  narrative.2  His 
disciples,  drawing  a  little  to  one  side,  were  standing  gazing 
upon  Him  as  He  preserved  the  posture  which  every  Ori- 
ental keeps  when  in  prayer,  —  erect,  with  uplifted  arms, 
and  eyes  raised  Heavenward.  So  soon  as  He  had  made  an 
end  of  praying  one  of  them  approached  Him. 

"  Lord,"  he  said,  "  teach  us  to  pray,  just  as  John  did  for 
his  disciples." 

Those  who  had  been  in  the  Baptist's  company  were 
numerous  in  these  lands  lying  alongside  the  Jordan ;  ap- 
parently it  was  one  of  John's  penitents  who  made  this  re- 
cpiest  of  Jesus.     A  new-comer  among  the  Apostles,  he  had 

1  This  first  sojourn  in  Perea,  as  we  shall  take  occasion  to  notice  in  the 
Appendix  (IX.)  is  indicated  by  S.  John  in  verse  40  of  Chapter  X.  The 
Evangelist  tells  us  that  Jesus  revisited  Perea  once  more  after  the  Dedica- 
tion :  'AirrjXdev  irdXiv  wtpav  rod  'lopbavov.  Consequently  He  had  been  there 
at  some  time  previous  to  this  Feast. 
2  Luke  xi.  1-4. 

VOL.  II.  — 6 


82         THIhli   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

not  as  yet  learned  that  Prayer  which  the  Lord  gave  them 
upon  the  Mount  of  Beatitudes ;  but  remembering  that  the 
Forerunner  had  prayed  with  his  disciples,  this  one  longed 
to  have  Jesus  do  the  same. 

The  Master  granted  his  wish. 

"  When  you  pray,"  He  responded,  "  say :  Father,  hal- 
lowed be  Thy  Name ;  Thy  Kingdom  come.  Give  us  this 
day  our  daily  bread.  And  forgive  us  our  sins,  since  we 
ourselves  forgive  all  those  that  are  indebted  to  us ;  and 
lead  us  not  into  temptation." 

This  second  form  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  is  a  precious  item 
in  our  inheritance:  as  it  is  given  with  fewer  words  in 
Saint  Luke  than  in  Saint  Matthew,1  it  shows  us  that 
Jesus,  even  while  prescribing  certain  formulas  for  our  use, 
left  the  spirit  of  prayer  free  to  soar  upward  unhampered.8 
All  that  seemed  of  the  highest  importance  in  His  eyes 
was  that  we  should  call  upon  God  as  a  Father,  desiring, 
above  all  things,  spiritual  good  things,  and  asking  them  for 
others  as  well  as  for  ourselves,  with  charity  warm  at  our 
hearts  and  with  the  spirit  of  forgiveness  upon  our  lips. 

Furthermore,  of  such  vital  necessity  is  this  duty  of 
prayer  that  the  Master  was  moved  to  speak  more  at  length 
thereof,  charging  them  to  pray  without  ceasing,  to  pray  un- 
wearyingly ;  for  though  God  may  seem  sometimes  to  be 
deaf  to  our  cries,  it  is  only  to  make  us  more  sensible  of  the 
greatness  of  His  gifts,  to  render  the  soul  lowlier,  and  to 
overpower  it  with  loving  kindnesses  and  tender  mercies. 
As  He  was  wont  to  do,  He  put  these  lessons  before  them 
in  a  figurative  form.3  Now  He  speaks  of  a  father  who 
would  not  give  his  hungry  child  a  stone  in  place  of  bread, 
nor  a  scorpion  instead  of  an  egg,  nor  a  serpent  when  he  is 
asked  for  a  fish ;  then  again  He  tells  of  a  poor  but  hospi- 

1  The  copyists  tried  to  do  away  with  these  variances  by  inserting  into 
S.  Luke's  text  words  borrowed  either  from  S.  Matthew  or  from  the  Litur- 
gies ;  hence  it  is  that  we  have  so  many  different  readings  just  in  this  part 
of  the  Third  Gospel. 

2  The  Church  has  faithfully  followed  the  example  of  her  Founder  in 
giving  to  her  liturgy  certain  regular  forms  on  the  one  hand,  while  on  the 
other  respecting  the  perfect  freedom  of  the  soul  in  all  the  exercises  of 
mental  prayer. 

a  Luke  xi.  5-12. 


THE  TWO  BLIND  MEN.  83 

table  man  who  has  received  some  wayfarer  in  the  middle 
of  the  night ; 1  at  once  he  hastens  off  to  knock  at  the  door 
of  a  neighbor's  house. 

"  Let  me  have  three  loaves,"  he  calls  out ;  "  for  a  guest 
has  arrived  at  my  house  from  off  his  journey,  and  I  have 
nothing  to  offer  him." 

But  the  friend  has  gone  to  rest,  his  children  at  his 
side,  his  dwelling  barred  and  shut  for  the  night,  and  he 
has  no  mind  to  rise  from  his  bed.  But  his  neighbor  stand- 
ing without  in  the  darkness  will  not  take  any  refusal ;  he 
keeps  on  rapping,  still  rapping,  until  the  other  yields  to 
his  entreaties,  giving  him  what  he  needs. 

"  And  in  like  manner,  I  say  to  you,"  the  Lord  pursued, 
"  ask  and  it  shall  be  given  you ;  seek  and  you  shall  find ; 
knock  and  it  shall  be  opened  to  you." 

It  was  about  this  same  time,  if  not  upon  the  very  same 
day,  that  we  are  told  of  two  miracles  performed  by  Jesus. 
He  was  betaking  Himself  to  a  dwelling  whose  proffered 
hospitalities  he  had  just  accepted,  when  two  blind  2  men 
became  aware  of  His  passing ;  forthwith  they  set  out  to 
follow  Him,  crying  out :  — 

"  Son  of  David,  have  pity  upon  us  ! "  3 

At  first  the  Lord  appeared  not  to  hear  them ;  publicly 
to  accept  this  honorable  title  in  Perea  within  the  domains 
of  Herod  would  have  been  to  proclaim  Himself  the  Mes- 
siah, and  would  have  at  once  reawakened  the  jealousy  of 
the  tetrarch.  To  evade  this  danger  He  therefore  sought 
shelter  within  a  dwelling ;  but  even  there  the  unfortunate 
men  managed  to  rejoin  Him.  Their  faith  moved  the 
Saviour  greatly. 

"  Do  you  believe,"  He  said  to  them,  "  that  I  am  able  to 
do  this  for  you  ? " 

1  It  is  the  custom  in  warm  climates  to  travel  in  the  night-time,  in  order 
to  escape  the  consuming  heats  of  the  day. 

2  Among  the  sick  folk  healed  b}^  Jesus  there  are  many  blind  ;  however, 
there  is  nothing  astonishing  in  this,  for  blindness  is  wofully  common  in 
Oriental  countries,  a  fact  easily  accounted  for  by  the  burning  dust  coming 
off  the  sand.  The  custom  of  sleeping  in  the  open  air,  under  tents,  and 
upon  the  house-tops,  also  contributes  toward  making  this  malady  more 
prevalent  by  exposing  the  eye  to  the  night-dews. 

8  Matt.  ix.  27-31. 


84         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS, 

To  this  they  replied,  simply, — 

"Yes,  Lord." 

Then  He  touched  their  eyes,  saying, — 

"  Let  it  be  done  unto  you  according  to  your  faith ! "  and 
upon  the  instant  they  recovered  their  sight,  while  Jesus 
sternly  warned  them  "  to  take  care  and  let  no  one  know  of 
this  ! "  But  they,  listening  only  to  the  promptings  of  this 
new-born  joy,  spread  the  report  throughout  all  that  land, 
and  thus,  like  so  many  others,  only  aggravated  the  dan- 
gers and  the  enmities  beneath  which  the  Master  was  soon 
to  succumb. 

In  the  Saviour's  eyes  it  was  more  important  to  drive 
out  the  devils  of  passion  than  to  heal  bodily  ills;  for,  after 
withstanding  the  blind  men's  demand  so  long,  we  see  that 
He  does  not  delay  an  instant  to  deliver  a  dumb  man  who 
was  vexed  with  an  evil  Spirit.1  This  possessed  mute  was 
brought  to  Him  at  the  very  moment  when  the  two  Jews 
were  leaving  the  house;2  and,  when  the  Demon  was  driven 
out,  the  man  straightway  began  to  speak.3  All  were  thrilled 
with  wonder  and  awe. 

"  No  one,"  cried  they,  "  ever  yet  saw  aught  like  this  in 
Israel." 

But  hereabouts,  too,  there  were  Pharisees,  some  of  win  an 
were  well  informed  of  those  calumnies  which  had  been 
circulated  throughout  Galilee,  and  they  repeated  them  to 
one  and  another  of  these  poor  people  whom  they  knew  so 
well  how  to  deceive. 

1  Luke  xi.  14,  15  ;  Matt.  ix.  32-34. 

2  hvTwv  8£  e£epxop.evwv,  l5ov  irpodriveyKav  .   .   .   kt\.     Matt.  ix.  32. 

3  The  possessed  man  in  the  eleventh  chapter  of  S.  Luke  is  evidently  the 
same  as  the  demoniac  whose  cure  S.  Matthew  relates  in  Chapter  IX.  of  his 
Gospel.  In  fact  hoth  are  dumb,  and  their  deliverance  is  greeted  with  the 
same  cries  of  admiration,  whereupon  the  Pharisees  interpose  with  the  same 
calumnies.  Now,  in  S.  Matthew,  the  healing  of  the  possessed  is  imme- 
diately preceded  by  that  of  the  two  blind  men  :  A&rwv  e^epx°lJ-^vwv  «5oi5. 
.  .  Such  precise  language  as  this  does  not  permit  of  our  separating  the 
two  miracles.  Though  we  have  transferred  these  two  events  to  the  time 
when  S.  Luke  speaks  of  the  cure  of  the  demoniac,  it  is  in  order  to  be  con- 
sistently faithful  to  the  chronological  order  of  this  Evangelist;  indeed  the 
text  of  S.  Matthew  oilers  nothing  in  opposition  to  this  arrangement,  for 
the  words  which  usher  in  the  miracles  of  the  blind  men:  Kai  irapayovr: 
tKeWev,  are  too  vague  to  admit  of  our  drawing  any  conclusion;?  as  to  the  date 
of  the  prodigy. 


THE  DUMB  DEVIL.  85 

"  'T  is  in  Beelzebub's  name,"  they  whispered,  "  that  he 
casts  out  devils." 

Again  Jesus  withstood  this  slander  with  the  fact  that 
they  themselves  and  their  sons  drove  out  the  devil  without 
borrowing  the  weapons  of  the  fiend,  and  that,  like  earthly 
kingdoms,  Hell  cannot  be  divided  against  itself  on  peril  of 
its  own  existence.1  And  yet  if  they  acknowledged  that 
the  power  Jesus  had  shown  over  Satan  came  not  from 
Beelzebub,  but  from  Heaven,  then  surely  the  hour  foretold 
by  Isaiah2  was  here  upon  them,  when  the  Kingdom  of 
God  would  be  established.  "Who  shall  despoil  the  giant 
of  his  prey,"  the  Prophet  cried ;  "  who  shall  rob  the  strong 
man  of  his  captives  ? "  "  The  captives  of  the  giant  shall 
be  reft  from  him,"  Jehovah  had  made  answer,  "  and  those 
that  the  mighty  man  hath  taken  shall  be  drawn  from  his 
clutches." 

The  Oracle  was  now  fulfilled.  In  vain  had  Satan,  "  the 
strong  man  armed,  guarded  his  dwelling,  and  trusted  that 
his  peace  was  never  more  to  be  disturbed :  a  stronger  than 
he  had  appeared,  had  stripped  him  of  his  armor,  and  dis- 
tributed his  spoils." 

Under  such  warlike  imagery  did  Jesus  proclaim  Himself 
the  Vanquisher  of  the  Devil,  aud  announce  to  mankind, 
who  by  sin  are  become  the  prey  and  bond-servants  of  Hell, 
that  He  had  come  to  break  the  chains  of  slavery,  bestowing 
upon  them  eternal  goods.3 

Yet  all  were  not  to  be  gladdened  by  such  deliverance, 
for  the  people  so  long  cherished  by  God  had  at  last  stub- 

1  Luke  xi.  17-22.  In  S.  Luke  the  Vulgate  gives  a  peculiar  turn  to  this 
thought  of  our  Lord  :  "  Omne  regnum  in  seipsum  divisum  desolabitur,  et 
domus  supra  domura  cadet."  "Every  kingdom  divided  against  itself 
shall  be  made  desolate,  and  the  houses  shall  fall  one  upon  the  other."  The 
Greek  text,  it  is  true,  can  be  translated  thus;  but  it  seems  more  nat- 
ural to  give  it  the  same  meaning  here  as  in  SS.  Matthew  and  Mark  : 
"  Every  kingdom  divided  against  itself  shall  be  brought  to  desolation, 
every  household  divided  against  itself  shall  fall"  (Matt.  xii.  25;  Mark 
iii.  25). 

2  Is.  xlix.  24,  25. 

3  Iu  this  place  (xi.  23)  S.  Luke  records  that  maxim  of  Jesus  :  "He  who 
is  not  with  Me  is  against  Me,  and  lie  who  gathereth  not  with  Me,  scatter- 
eth."  Doubtless  it  was  the  thought  of  Satan's  spoils,  distributed  among 
the  liberated  souls,  which  suggested  these  words  to  the  Master. 


8Q        THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MIXISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

bornly  rejected  salvation.  Taking  a  possessed  man  1  as  a 
fitting  comparison,  Jesus  showed  the  headstrong  blunders 

of  the  Jews  and  their  approaching  ruin.  He  spoke  of  the 
Devil  of  Idolatry,  as  it  came  out  from  Israel  in  the  time  of 
the  Babylonian  Captivity,  doomed  to  wander  amid  waste 
ami  waterless  places,  through  those  wrecks  of  time  where, 
in  the  language  of  Isaiah,  "  their  pleasant  palaces  are  idled 
with  dragons,  where  satyrs  lead  their  dances,  and  the  owls 
hoot  to  one  another."2  Not  finding  repose  in  any  quarter 
he  returns  into  the  land  of  Juda,  aforetime  his  abode,  finds 
it  chastened  and  purified,  swept  clean  of  its  idolatries,  but 
garnished  with  a  righteousness  that  is  altogether  of  the 
exterior.  Whereupon,  assured  of  new  victories,  he  makes 
haste  to  take  seven  other  Spirits,  all  wickeder  than  himself, 
and  returning  into  Israel  they  there  set  up  their  abode,  and 
her  last  state  becomes  worse  than  the  first.3 

Did  the  Pharisees  recognize  how  perfectly  this  image 
resembled  themselves  ?  There  is  nothing  to  indicate  that 
they  did;  nevertheless,  though  the  bandage  still  blind- 
folded their  eyes,  the  people  put  no  restraint  upon  their 
own  delighted  wonderment,  insomuch  that  one  woman,  as 
if  constituting  herself  the  mouthpiece  of  the  multitude, 
cried  aloud  just  at  this  moment:4  — 

"  Blessed  the  womb  which  bore  Thee,  and  the  paps  that 
gave  Thee  suck  ! " 

"  Ay,  doubtless,"  5  responded  Jesus,  "  but  blesseder  still 
are  those  who  hear  and  keep  the  word  of  God  ! " 

By  this  He  gave  Israel  of  the  flesh  to  understand  that 

1  Luke  xi.  24-26. 

2  Is.  xiii.  21,  22. 

3  Indeed  to  the  Saviour's  mind  this  possession  of  the  devil  was  strik- 
ingly figurative  of  Judea,  of  her  past  history,  of  the  state  wherein  she  now 
was,  and  of  the  sad  fate  which  threatened  her;  for  in  S.  Matthew  the 
Parable  ends  with  these  significant  words:  "Thus  shall  it  befall  this 
accursed  race"  (.Matt.  xii.  1~>). 

4  Luke  xi.  27,  28. 

5  M&v  ovv.  ijuin  imo,  imo  vero.  This  saying  of  Jesus  detracts  nothing 
from  the  worth  of  the  divine  Motherhood  ;  but  it  indicates  that  there  is  a 
yet.  more  precious  glory  enshrined  in  Mary,  thai  of  having,  by  her  faith  and 
virtue,  merited  to  conceive  <  rod  according  to  the  flesh.  "  Materna  propin« 
quitas  nihil  Mariae  profuisset,  nisi  felicius  Christum  corde  quun  came 
gestasset "  (S.  Augustine,  Dc  ISancta  Virginitate,  cap.  iii.). 


THE  SIGN  FROM  ON  HIGH.  87 

there  is  a  blessedness  more  exalted  than  that  of  any  earthly 
motherhood,  albeit  Divine, —  that  of  conceiving  Jesus  Christ 
in  the  heart  by  the  quickening  warmth  of  faith,  and  bear- 
ing Him  outwardly  before  man  in  the  open  fulfilment  of 
His  behests  and  good  pleasure. 

Meanwhile  the  throngs  grew  denser,  for  after  the  heal- 
ing of  the  possessed  certain  of  the  Jews  had  demanded 
some  more  extraordinary  miracle,  —  "some  Sign  coming 
from  Heaven."  1  The  Lord,  preoccupied  with  refuting  the 
Pharisees'  slanderous  attacks,  had  not  as  yet  refused  their 
request,  and  so  there  were  still  some  hopes  lingering  among 
them  that  they  were  soon  to  see  a  new  and  startling  pro- 
digy.2 Turning  toward  the  men  who  had  excited  these 
vain  expectations,  Jesus  dealt  with  them  as  with  "  an  ac- 
cursed and  adulterous3  race,"  and  answered  them  "that 
there  should  no  Sign  be  given  them  save  only  that  of 
Jonas  Prophet." 

This  was  a  well  deserved  rebuke,  for  it  was  but  one  more 
insult  to  the  Christ  that  they  were  still  unsatisfied  with 
the  marvels  which  He  was  forever  multiplying  on  every 
hand.  In  order  to  convince  these  hardened  hearts  it  would 
indeed  require  the  Voice  of  Jehovah  Himself,  sounding 
from  the  heavenly  heights,  to  confirm  the  miracles  of  Jesus 
as  being  Divine.  What  wonder,  then,  that  the  Lord  left 
these  incredulous  men  no  hope  of  any  sign  other  than  that 
one  He  had  destined  for  the  whole  world,  —  His  Eesurrec- 
tion,  which  long  since  had  been  prefigured  in  Jonas.4  Af- 
ter three  days,  passed  in  the  depths  of  the  sea,  the  Prophet 
had  emerged  thence  bearing  salvation  to  Niniveh ;  so,  too, 
the  Christ  would  rest  three  days  and  three  nights 5  in  the 

1  Luke  xi.  16. 
3  Luke  xi.  29. 

3  Matt.  xii.  39.  As  the  plighted  Consort  of  Jehovah  (using  the  beauti- 
ful imagery  of  the  Prophets)  the  Jewish  nation  could  not  disown  and  reject 
God  without  justly  incurring  this  stigma  of  adultery. 

4  This  is  the  second  time  Jesus  speaks  of  Jonas,  and  under  the  same 
circumstances  (Matt.  xvi.  4.     See  p.  18). 

5  These  words  do  not  imply  that  Jesus  must  needs  pass  three  full  days 
and  all  of  three  nights  in  the  tomb.  We  have  seen  (Vol.  I.,  p.  132)  that 
the  Jewish  day  commenced  at  sunset,  ending  on  the  morrow  at  the  swne 
hour ;    this    is   what    they  call    rui>*,    the   pi%0'qixepov  of   the    Greeks. 


88        THIRD    YE  All  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

earth's  dark  bosom,  and  from  thence  rearise  all  glorious. 
But  this  'Sign,  though  so  wondrous  as  to  convert  whole  Gen- 
tile nations,  would  leave  the  Jews  alone  in  their  blindness. 
This  Jesus  now  foretold  to  them,  and  thus  beforehand 
bewailed  their  reprobation. 

"The  men  of  Niniveh,"  said  the  Lord,  "shall  rise  against 
this  race  and  shall  condemn  it,  for  they  did  penance  at  the 
preaching  of  Jonas,  and  Due  greater  than  Jonas  is  here. 
The  Queen  of  the  South1  shall  rise  in  judgment  against 
this  race,  and  she  shall  condemn  it,  for  she  came  from  the 
ends  of  the  earth  to  hear  the  wisdom  of  Solomon,  and  there 
is  here  One  greater  than  Solomon."  2 

Now  any  part  of  this  time  was  counted  as  an  entire  clay.  "  Dies  et  nox 
constituent  tempus  (HJU'),  et  pars  temporis  est  sicut  totum"  (Light- 
foot,  Haras  Hebralcce,  in  Matt.  xii.  40).  Hence,  for  fulfilment  of  the  pre- 
diction, it  was  enough  that  Jesus  should  be  buried  before  the  close  of  the 
first  day,  that  He  pass  the  second  in  the  tomb,  and  rise  again  in  the  first 
hours  of  the  third. 

1  The  Third  Book  of  Kings  tells  at  length  of  this  Queen  of  the  South, 
how  with  her  splendid  equipage  she  entered  Jerusalem,  of  her  presents, 
and  of  the  enigmas  she  proposed  to  Solomon.  The  Arabian  legends  give 
her  the  name  of  Balkis  (Koran,  chapter  xxvii. ).  She  did  not  come  from 
Egypt  and  Ethiopia,  as  Josephus  and  certain  Rabbis  have  held,  but  from 
Saba  in  Arabia,  and  her  realm  embraced  a  large  part  of  Yemen. 

2  Luke  xi.  31-32  ;  Matt.  xii.  41,  42.  Beside  the  condemnation  of  those 
who  demanded  a  new  sign,  S.  Luke  adds  certain  words  which  just  at  this 
juncture  Jesus  addressed,  not  so  much  to  the  incredulous  Jews,  from  whom 
He  had  turned  away  in  deep  grief,  but  apparently  to  the  disciples  and  to 
the  docile  multitude,  whom  He  again  began  to  instruct  (Luke  xi.  33-36). 
He  repeated  (Matt.  x.  27)  that  He  entrusted  them  with  His  Doctrine,  "not 
that  it  should  be  kept  in  the  dark,  but  to  be  raised  aloft,  like  the  torch 
set  in  its  standard,"  and  thus  illumine  the  world.  The  most  grievous 
obstacle  it  could  encounter  was  within  themselves,  in  their  own  hearts,  for 
the  heart  is  to  the  interior  life  of  man  what  his  eye  is  to  Ins  body.  "  If 
the  eye  be  pure  the  whole  body  is  enlightened  ;  if  it  be  dimmed  the  whole 
body  is  in  darkness.  Therefore  take  heed,"  Jesus  concluded,  "that  that 
which  is  the  true  light  within  us  "  —  that  the  soul  —  "  be  not  darkened  " 
by  the  clouds  of  passion.  Let  it  be  with  her,  as  with  thy  body,  "  which  is 
all  luminous  when  a  torch  sheds  its  full  light  upon  it ;  "  only  let  no  gloom 
of  passion  overhang  thy  spirits,  and  then,  indeed,  the  light  of  faith  shall 
altogether  fill  thee  with  its  rays. 


JESUS  AND   THE  PHARISEES.  89 

II.    Jesus  and  the  Pharisees. 

Luke  xi.  37-54  ;  xii.  1-59. 

Toward  the  middle  of  the  day,  the  hour  in  which  the 
Jews  take  their  first  meal,  a  Pharisee  approached  the  Mas- 
ter, praying  Him  to  eat  with  him  at  his  house.1  Jesus 
accepted  the  invitation.  Pound  about  the  threshold  of  the 
dining-hall  a  considerable  company  awaited  His  coming, 
composed  exclusively  of  Pharisees  and  Scribes ;  for  it  would 
seem  that,  as  the  Apostles  were  not  bidden,  the  Master 
found  Himself  alone  in  the  midst  of  these  Doctors,  who 
were  as  vain  of  their  own  learning  as  they  were  envious 
of  His  glory.  One  and  all,  Scribes,  Pharisees,  and  law- 
yers, went  through  with  their  ablutions  in  the  entrance- 
way,  and  doubtless  in  this  instance  with  an  even  greater 
affectation  of  zeal  than  usual.  Walking  straight  past 
them  without  stopping  to  imitate  their  ceremonies  Jesus 
went  immediately  to  the  table  and  took  his  place  upon 
one  of  the  couches. 

Such  disdain  for  their  prescriptions  pricked  the  vanity 
of  these  fanatics.  Soon  Jesus  saw  the  eyes  of  his  host 
were  fixed  sternly  upon  him. 

"  Why,"  the  sectary  was  muttering,  "  why  did  not  this 
man  wash  along  with  the  rest  ? "  These  complaints  were 
at  once  echoed  by  the  guests,  and  soon  degenerated  into 
such  violent  expressions  that  the  Lord  was  constrained  to 
check  the  rising  tumult. 

He  began  by  telling  His  enemies  that  though  they  were 
scrupulous  in  purifying  the  outside  of  the  cup  they  left 
the  inside  full  of  ravening  and  corruption ;  that  they  ne- 
glected the  duties  of  charity,  the  love  of  God  and  the 
neighbor,  in  order  to  cover  over  their  hard-heartedness 
and  conceit  with  a  mask  of  religion.  Then,  sfivinsr  fuller 
utterance  to  His  indignation,  He  launched  that  threefold 
anathema  upon  them  — 

1"Oiro}s  apiffr-qtrri  (Luke  xi.  37).  The  iipicTov,  the  prandium  of  the 
Romans,  is  properly  speaking  the  morning  meal ;  the  principal  repast 
deiirvov,  was  served  in  the  evening. 


90         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  Woe  to  you,  Pharisees,  because  you  pay  tithes  on  mint, 
on  rue,1  and  on  every  herb,  but  put  aside  justice  and  the 
love  of  God !  These  things  it  behoved  you  to  do,  and  not 
to  leave  the  others  undone. 

"  Woe  to  you,  Pharisees,  because  you  love  the  first  seats 
in  the  synagogues  and  salutations  in  public  places ! 

"  Woe  unto  you  because  you  are  like  hidden  sepulchres,2 
and  men  that  walk  over  them  know  it  not!" 

The  Pharisees  quivered  with  fury  under  this  censure. 
Seated  near  Him  was  one  of  the  Scribes,  who  was  moved  to 
respond : 3  — 

"  Master,  in  speaking  thus,  you  cast  opprobium  upon  us 
as  well." 

Jesus  turned  and  looked  at  him. 

"  Woe  to  you  also,"  He  said,  "  Doctors  of  the  Law,  be- 
cause you  load  men  down  with  intolerable  burdens,  and 
you  yourselves  do  not  so  much  as  touch  them  with  the 
tips  of  your  fingers  ! " 

They  were  as  much  guilty  as  the  Pharisees,  since,  like 
them,  their  only  aim  was  to  impose  upon  the  people ;  they 
reared  mighty  monuments  in  honor  of  the  Prophets  im- 
molated by  their  fathers,  and  now  here  they  were  at  heart 
become  accomplices  in  those  very  crimes,  by  wishing  that 
a  like  fate  would  befall  the  Saviour,  the  Son  of  God  ! 
Finally,  they  had  appropriated  to  themselves  the  key  of 
knowledge,  not  to  open  a  free  passage  for  the  people,  but 
to  hinder  and  forbid  any  one's  entering  therein.  In  their 
eyes  it  appeared  that  the  Christ  was  about  to  open  the 
Book  which  they  had  heretofore  obstinately  held  shut, — 
whose  every  page  bore  their  own  conviction  inscribed  by 
the  finger  of  Divine  Wisdom  :  "  I  will  send  them  Prophets 

1  The  ancients  made  use  of  mint  and  rue  (Ruta  graveolens),  sometimes 
as  a  medicine,  sometimes  as  a  condiment  (Celsus,  Hierobotanicon  ;  Dioseo- 
rides,  Dc  Materia  medica,  iii.  36,  45  ;  riiny,  Historia  naturalis,  xix.  18). 

2  This  was  equivalent  to  telling  them  that  one  was  as  much  contami- 
nated hy  contact,  with  them  as  by  passing  over  a  tomb.  Later  on  in  Jeru- 
salem (Matt,  xxiii.  27),  seeing  the  Pharisees  at  their  pompous  displays  of 
virtue,  Jesus  compared  them  to  sepulchres,  this  time  not  hidden,  but  rather 
overwhitened  and  shining  with  a  beautiful  exterior  even  while  their  inte- 
rior reeked  with  corruption. 

3  Luke  xi.  45-52. 


JESUS  AND  THE  PHARISEES.  91 

and  Apostles,  aud  they  shall  kill  some  and  persecute  others, 
that  the  blood  of  all  the  Prophets  and  Apostles  which  has 
been  shed  since  the  foundation  of  the  world  may  be  re- 
quired of  this  race,  from  the  blood  of  Abel  unto  the  blood 
of  Zachary,1  who  was  slain  between  the  Temple  and  the 
Altar.  Yea,  I  say  unto  you  it  shall  be  required  of  this 
race." 

After  this  fearful  menace  Jesus  rose  to  depart.2  Imme- 
diately the  company  jumped  to  their  feet;  Scribes  and 
Pharisees  pressed  about  Him,  and  well-nigh  deafened  Him 
with  a  volley  of  questions,  with  the  hope  of  surprising  Him 
in  some  expressions  out  of  which  they  might  construct  a 
legal  accusation.3  According  to  Saint  Luke's  metaphor  it 
was  a  fierce,  breathless  chase,  the  maddened  pack  dash- 
ing upon  their  prey  and  flinging  themselves  upon  Him, 
bent  uj3on  bringing  Him  to  the  earth.4     But  the  common 

1  This  Zachary  is  neither  the  father  of  John  Baptist  nor  the  Prophet 
whose  Oracles  we  still  possess,  but  the  priest  whose  death  is  thus  described 
in  the  Paralipomenons  :  "He  sent  them  Prophets  to  bring  them  hack  to 
the  Lord,  but  they  would  not  hearken  to  them.  Then  the  Spirit  of  God 
filled  the  priest  Za'chary,  son  of  Joaida,  and  he  came  forth,  standing  before 
the  people,  .  .  .  but  they  conspired  against  him,  and  stoned  him  in  the 
porches  of  the  House  of  the  Lord,  according  to  the  king's  commandment" 
(2  Paral.  xxiv.  19-22).  It  seems  evident  to  us  that  Jesus  is  speaking  of 
this  priest,  son  of  Joaida,  for  :  (1)  He  was  "killed  in  the  porches  of  the 
Lord's  House,"  and  this  accords  with  the  Gospel  narrative,  which  speaks  of 
the  murder  taking  place  between  the  Altar  of  Holocausts  (dvcnaarripLov), 
which  stood  in  the  porches  of  the  Levites,  and  the  Sanctuary,  properly  so 
called  {oikov)  (Luke  xi.  51)  ;  (2)  Jesus  speaks  of  the  first  and  last  of  the 
immolated  Prophets.  Now  Abel  is,  in  fact,  the  first  of  the  just  and  Zach- 
ary the  last  of  the  Prophets,  whose  murder  is  recounted  in  the  Hebraic 
Bible,  which  terminates  with  the  two  Books  of  Paralipomenon.  The  only 
objection  which  can  be  raised  in  this  connection  is  that  Zachary  is  spoken 
of  as  son  of  Joaida  in  the  Paralipomenons,  and  not  as  the  son  of  Barachy. 
But  it  was  by  no  means  rare  for  Hebrews  to  have  two  names  ;  and  it  is 
perfectly  natural  to  infer  that  the  father  of  Zachary  had  both  names, 
Barachy  and  Joaida.  The  latter  name,  S.  Jerome  tells  us,  is  the  one  given 
him  in  the  "Gospel  of  the  Nazarenes." 

2  Luke  xi.  53,  54.  The  Manuscripts  of  Sinai",  the  Vatican,  and  Ephraeni 
keep  the  invaluable  reading  adopted  by  Tischendorf :  ~Kq.KeWep  ^eXdSvros 
avrov  .  .  .  The  Vulgate  and  most  of  the  Versions  have  the  other  lection, 
found  in  the  Alexandrian  Manuscript  and  in  Beda's  Codex  :  Aiyovros  8£ 
avrov  ravra  irpbs  aiVofo. 

3' kiroarofiarl^av  (Luke  xi.  53).  'kith  rod  CTofJLaros  Kparetv  (Theophylac- 
tus,  in  loco). 

i  'EvedpeOovre?  drjpevaai  n  (Luke  xi.  54). 


92        THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

people  had  not  abandoned  the  divine  Master,  and  they  were 
now  at  the  doors  "ranged  in  such  serried  masses  that  they 
trod  upon  one  another."1  All  that  had  oceurred  within 
the  hall  passed  swiftly  from  mouth  to  mouth;  the  excite- 
ment evidenced  by  the  crowds  made  the  Pharisees  not  so 
loath  to  part  with  their  Guest;  and  so  again  this  time  they 
let  Him  go  unscathed. 

Hardly  had  He  left  their  presence,  when  He  began  to 
forewarn  His  disciples  against  the  hypocrisy  of  the  men 
who  had  attacked  Him.  At  last  the  time  had  come  to  pub- 
lish abroad,  "  in  the  daylight  and  on  the  housetops,  that 
which  hitherto  He  had  confided  to  private  ears  and  in  the 
darkness." 

"  I  say  to  you,"  He  cried  aloud,  "  to  you  who  are  My 
friends  :  Have  no  fear  of  them  who  can  kill  the  body,  hut 
whose  power  goes  no  further  than  that.  I  will  show  you 
whom  you  must  fear :  Fear  him  who,  after  he  hath  brought 
death  upon  you,  hath  power  to  bring  you  down  to  Gehenna; 
yea,  I  say  to  you,  fear  him."  And  He  exhorted  them  to 
confess  Him  without  fear,2  even  when  hotly  pursued  by 
these  same  doctors.  They  should  be  dragged  into  the 
synagogues,  before  magistrates,  and  all  powers  of  earth ;  yet 
they  need  put  themselves  to  no  pains  as  to  how  they  should 
reply,  for  God's  Holy  Spirit  "  would  teach  them  in  that  same 
hour  what  they  ought  to  say." 

The  people  were  listening  with  speechless  interest,  when 
from  the  midst  of  the  multitudes  came  the  voice  of  a  Jew, 
calling  upon  the  Lord.3  Struck  by  the  commanding  power 
of  the  Christ,  he  conceived  it  was  a  most  auspicious  oppor- 
tunity to  terminate  a  family  quarrel  by  turning  it  to  his 
own  advantage. 

1  Luke  xii.  1-12. 

2  Jesus  repeats  this  thought  under  three  different  forms  in  order  the 
better  to  bring  it.  home  to  their  minds.  He  demands  of  His  disciples  that 
they  "Confess  Him  before  men"  (Luke  xii.  8),  "  that  they  deny  Him  not" 
(Luke  xii.  !)),  "that  they  fall  not  by  apostasy  into  that  voluntary  infi- 
delity which  God  can  nevermore  pardon'  (Luke  xii.  10),  because  man, 
seeing  the  light,  blasphemes  it,  —  shuts  his  eyes  so  as"  not  to  behold  it. 
and  thrusts  away  that  outstretched  Hand  which  alone  could  have  saved 
him. 

»  Luke  xii.  13-21. 


JESUS  AND  THE  PHARISEES.  93 

*'  Master,"  lie  called  out,  "  order  my  brother  to  give  me  a 
share  in  his  inheritance." 

Jesus  rebuked  this  fellow,  who  looked  only  to  gain  his 
own  selfish  profits  from  the  coming  of  the  Messiah's  reign. 

"  Man,"  He  said,  "  who  has  constituted  Me  to  be  your 
judge  and  to  appoint  shares  for  you  ? " 

Such  wretched  cares  were  indeed  unworthy  of  Him,  for 
He  was  come  into  this  world  to  teach  us  that  "  life  does 
not  consist  in  that  which  a  man  possesses.  He  was  moved 
to  explain  His  thought  more  fully  by  means  of  a  Parable  : 

"There  was  a  wealthy  man,  whose  fields  yielded  rich 
harvests.  And  he  thought  within  himself,  saying :  '  What 
shall  I  do  ?  I  have  no  room  wherein  I  can  store  my  crops.' 
And  he  said :  '  Ah !  here  is  what  I  will  do !  I  will  tear 
down  my  barns,  and  I  will  build  greater,  and  thither  I  will 
gather  all  my  crops  and  all  my  goods.  And  I  will  say : 
My  Soul,  thou  hast  great  store  of  goods  for  many  years ; 
take  thine  ease,  eat,  drink,  and  have  good  cheer.'  But  God 
said  to  him  :  'Foolish  man  I1  this  night  shall  thy  soul  be 
required  of  thee ;  and  whose  shall  be  that  great  wealth 
whicli  thou  hast  acquired  ? '  " 

It  was  easy  to  read  beneath  this  imagery  another  lesson 
anent  the  vanity  of  riches  :  still  Jesus  knew  that  His  hear- 
ers were  so  blinded  by  their  love  of  earthly  goods  that  He 
dwelt  louger  upon  this  subject.2  Pointing  up  to  the  fast- 
flying  crows  hovering  over  their  heads,  and  to  the  meadow- 
lilies  under  their  feet,  God's  creatures  which  leave  the  care 
of  food  and  raiment  all  in  His  hands,  He  bade  them  not  to 
let  themselves  be  harassed  and,  as  it  were,  tossed  about3  by 
the  troubles  of  life  :  — 

"  Fear  not,  little  flock,  for  it  is  your  Father's  good  pleas- 

1  The  rich  man  does  indeed  heap  up  folly  upon  folly  ;  he  forgets  Him 
who  bestows  upon  him  all  that  which  he  proudly  calls  "my  fruits,  my 
goods  ;"  he  would  reserve  everything  for  himself  (crvvafa  Travra),  and  fan- 
cies that  he  will  find  in  material  wealth  the  nourishment  needful  for  his 
soul.     He  forgets  that  he  must  die. 

2  Luke  xii.  22-34. 

3  M?7  nerewpifcade  (Luke  xii.  29)  is  translated  in  the  Vulgate  by  "  No- 
lite  in  sublime  tolli."  This  is  to  be  understood  in  the  sense  :  "  Be  not 
as  if  suspended  in  air,  easily  disturbed,  ever  veering  betwixt  fear  and 
hope." 


94         THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

ure  to  give  you  a  Kingdom.  Sell  all  that  you  Lave  and 
give  alms.  Make  yourselves  purses  which  wear  not  out 
with  time,  a  treasure  which  faileth  not  in  the  heavens;  foi 
where  your  treasure  is  there  will  your  heart  be  also." 

As  we  see,  the  Lord  was  repeating  to  the  Jews  of  Perea 
the  same  lessons  formerly  given  the  Galileans;  but  now,  as 
the  time  grew  shorter,  He  added  still  mure  impressive 
Counsels,  —  for  His  Mission  was  fast  drawing  to  its  close.1 
He  wished  them  to  be  ever  vigilant,  with  loins  upgirt,  with 
lamps  burning  in  their  hands,  like  waiting-men  who  stand 
watching  for  their  master.2 

"  I  am  come  to  kindle  a  fire  upon  the  earth,"  He  said, 
"  and  what  will  I  but  that  it  blaze  forth  right  quickly  ? 3 
I  have  a  Baptism  wherewith  I  am  to  be  baptized;4  and 
how  am  I  straitened  until  it  be  accomplished  ! " 

Thus,  together  with  that  immense  longing  to  save  the 
world,  there  was  an  accompanying  host  of  sad  forebodings  ; 

1  Luke  xii.  35-53. 

2  "  Happy  are  those  servants,"  added  Jesus,  "if  the  Master  at  His 
coming  find  them  keeping  watch.  Verily,  I  say  unto  you,  He  will  gird 
Himself,  make  them  to  sit  down  at  table,  and,  passing  from  one  to  the 
other,  He  will  serve  them."  This  Mystic  Table  is  the  Eucharist ;  that 
grace  is  the  eternal  blessedness  promised  to  the  soul  detached  from  the 
world,  and  ready  to  leave  all  for  Jesus.  This  Peter  did  not  understand  ; 
he  only  noted  those  words  whereby  the  Master,  to  mark  the  suddenness  of 
His  coming,  likened  it  to  the  sudden  onset  of  a  robber  (Luke  xii.  39). 
Refusing  to  believe  that  Jesus  would  thus  surprise  His  friends,  "  Lord," 
he  asked,  "do  You  speak  this  Parable  for  us  or  for  the  world?"  The 
Saviour  made  no  answer  ;  He  thought  it  best  that  this  presumptuous  soul 
should  retain  his  fear  of  God's  judgments.  Therefore  He  gave  him  to 
understand  that  His  pastors  shall  have  to  render  an  accounting,  so  much 
the  more  terrible  as  their  mission  is  the  more  exalted.  They  are  "the 
faithful  and  prudent  stewards  whom  the  Master  sets  over  His  servants,  to 
distribute  to  them  their  wheat  in  season  and  in  due  measure."  Blessed  are 
they  surely  if  they  be  found  so  doing  !  The  Master  will  set  them  over  all 
His  goods  ;  but  if  they  abuse  their  authority  their  punishment  shall  lie 
awful,  for  "much  shall  be  required  of  him  to  whom  much  has  been 
given  "  (Luke  xii.  41-48). 

3  So  S.  Hilary,  Euthymius,  and  Theophylactus  translate  it :  Origen 
separates  the  two  phrases:  "And  what  will  I  ?  Ah  !  that  it  be  kindled 
forthwith  ! " 

4  "Oh  my  Saviour,  this  Baptism  wherewith  Thou  didst  desire  to  be 
baptized  was  the  baptism  of  Thy  Blood,  wherein  Thou  wast  to  be  plunged 
for  our  transgressions  by  Thy  most  grievous  Passion"  (Bossuet,  Medita- 
tions pour  le  Jubile,  i.  1,  3). 


JESUS  AND  THE  PHARISEES.  95 

for  the  Christ  knew  what  wild  storms  were  gathering  against 
His  work  and  how,  in  a  few  short  months,  faith  in  His  Name 
would  be  the  occasion  for  bitter  persecutions. 

"  Think  you,"  said  He,  "  that  I  am  come  to  bring  peace 
to  earth  ?  No,  I  tell  you,  rather  the  sword  and  separation. 
Henceforth,  if  there  be  five  persons  in  one  house,  they  shall 
be  divided,  three  against  two,  and  two  against  three ;  the 
father  against  the  son  and  the  son  against  his  father,  the 
mother  against  the  daughter  and  the  daughter  against  her 
mother." 

Yet  the  multitude  listened  to  these  words  without  com- 
prehending them,  without  any  inkling  of  the  great  strug- 
gles which  Jesus  was  foretelling,  and  how  close  at  hand 
was  the  Redemption  of  mankind.  With  something  almost 
like  bitterness,  He  reproached  them  for  their  apathy.1 
Why,  since  they  were  so  clever  at  guessing  by  the  cloud- 
rack  on  the  western  horizon,  or  by  noting  the  southerly 
breezes,  whether  the  day  was  likely  to  be  showery  or 
warm,  —  why  could  they  not  discern  the  drift  of  the  times 
wherein  they  now  were  ?  Very  soon  it  would  be  too  late ; 
the  acceptable  hour  of  salvation  once  slipped  by,  the  Lord 
would  become  a  rigorous  creditor,  who  would  deliver  them 
over  to  the  judge  ;  and  the  judge  would  cast  them  into  the 
dungeon,  from  whence  none  goeth  forth  till  after  he  has 
paid  all,  unto  the  very  last  farthing. 

1  Luke  xii.  54-59. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  DEDICATION. 

Luke  xiii.  1-35  ;  John  x.  22-42. 

While  Jesus  was  thus  telling  the  Good  Tidings  to  the 
land  of  Perea  a  rumor  passed  from  mouth  to  mouth  that 
another  bloody  insurrection  had  purpled  the  streets  of 
Jerusalem.1  Certain  of  the  Galileans  had  striven  to  shake 
off  the  yoke  of  Pome ;  but  surprised  by  Pilate's  soldiery 
just  in  the  act  of  offering  sacrifice,  the  revolutionists  all 
fell  in  front  of  the  great  Altar,  mingling  their  blood  with 
that  of  the  victims.  To  Jewish  eyes  it  seemed  that  so 
baleful  an  event  could  but  be  regarded  as  permitted  by 
God  in  atonement  for  some  heinous  crime ;  for  it  was  a 
deep-rooted  feeling  with  them  that  that  man  is  most 
grievously  afflicted  who  is  guiltiest  in  the  sight  of  God. 
Anxious  to  know  what  awful  sins  had  drawn  down  such 
punishment  upon  the  conspirators,  some  of  the  disciples 
hastened  to  give  an  account  of  this  massacre  to  the 
Christ. 

Jesus  knew  their  thoughts.  "  Do  you  believe,"  He  re- 
plied,2 "  that  these  Galileans  were  the  greatest  sinners 
among  their  countrymen  because  they  have  suffered  such 
things  ?     Nay,  I  tell  you." 

1  Luke  xiii.  1-5.  Here  S.  Luke  alludes  to  one  of  the  numerous  insur- 
rections occurring  at  Jerusalem  (.loscphus,  Antiquitates,  xvii.  9,  3  ;  10,  2  ; 
xviii.  3,  1  ;  Bclhwn  Judniniii),  ii.  9,  4).  The  turbulent  spirit  of  the  .lews, 
the  hitter  feuds  which  hurst  out  at  the  appearance  of  every  false  Mes- 
siah, obliged  Pilate  to  maintain  a  garrison  in  Antonia.  From  this  for- 
tress, which  overlooked  the  Temple,  the  legionaries  kept  guard  upon  the 
people. 

2  Luke  xiii.  2-5. 


THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  DEDICATION         97 

Then  He  recalled  bow,  not  long  since,  at  Siloe,  a  tower 
had  crashed  down  upon  some  eighteen  persons ; 1  and  here 
again  He  denied  that  any  man  of  them  was  more  blame- 
worthy in  God's  sight  than  the  other  citizens  of  Jerusalem. 
To  estimate  the  wrong-doing  of  these  poor  victims  by  the 
horror  of  such  accidents  is  to  forget  that  our  present  life  is 
a  season  of  trial,  in  which  misfortune  does  not  always  visit 
us  as  a  chastisement  for  our  crimes.  And  yet  what  seems 
like  a  meaningless  jumble  of  human  events  does  indeed 
but  conceal  a  marvellous  order,  a  Plan  full  of  unfathomable 
wisdom  and  goodness,  a  Design  which  as  yet  remains  the 
secret  of  God.  Jesus  bade  His  disciples  refrain  from  all 
efforts  to  sound  the  depths  of  God's  mysteries,  urging  them 
rather  to  turn  their  gaze  inward  upon  themselves,  and  thus 
mould  and  fashion  their  wills  to  that  of  the  Divine  Justice, 
while  still  there  was  time.  Then,  the  better  to  convince 
their  minds,  He  made  use  of  a  Parable  : 2  — 

"  There  was  a  man  who  had  a  fig-tree  planted  in  his  vine- 
yard ; 3  thither  he  came  looking  for  fruit  and  found  none. 
Then  he  said  to  the  vine-dresser :  '  For  three  years  I  have 
come  looking  for  fruit  from  this  fig-tree,  and  I  find  none. 
Cut  it  down  ;  why  does  it  still  cumber  the  ground  ? '  The 
vine-dresser  answered  :  '  Lord,  let  it  alone  for  this  one  more 
year,  until  I  dig  about  it  and  dung  it.  Then  if  it  bear  fruit, 
it  shall  be  kept ;  if  not,  you  shall  cut  it  down  ? ' " 

In  the  person  of  this  Vintager  Jesus  represented  Him- 
self pleading  for  Judea,  His  cherished  Vineyard,  most  of 
all  for  Jerusalem,  which  rose  up  in  the  midst  like  a  barren 
fig-tree.  For  three  years  had  the  heavenly  Father  sought 
fruit  from  off  its  brandies,  but  without  avail ;  at  length  with 
His  death  so  near  at  hand,  all  that  Jesus  could  do  was  to 
obtain  from  God  one  last  year  of  patience,  that  year  which 
was  to  extend  from  the  Passion  up  to  the  destruction  of 

1  Ewald  and  Sepp  suppose  that  these  eighteen  men  were  working  on  the 
aqueduct  which  Pilate  was  then  constructing,  and  which  passed  near  Siloe. 
The  Jews  regarded  this  work  as  impious,  because  it  was  carried  on  with 
money  destined  for  the  Temple  (Josephus,  Bcllum  Judaicum,  ii.  9,  4). 

2  Luke  xiii.  6-9. 

3  There  is  no  commoner  sight  in  Judea  than  fruit-trees  rising  here  and 
there  in  the  midst  of  the  vineyards. 

VOL.   II.  —  7 


98        THIRD    YEAR   OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Jerusalem.  Oh  that  Israel  would  but  hearken  to  this  final, 
mighty  appeal !  Would  indeed  that  she  might  bring  forth 
the  flower  and  the  fruit  so  long  and  patiently  expected ! 

In  Perea,  at  least,  these  earnest  words  of  the  Lord  con- 
tinued to  meet  with  a  favorable  reception,  and  the  syna- 
gogues, though  elsewhere  shut  against  him,  were  here 
thrown  open  to  welcome  Him.  About  this  time,  in  fact, 
we  find  Him  teaching  in  one  of  them  on  a.  Sabbath-day,  as 
He  used  formerly  to  do  in  Galilee.1  "  And  here,  behold  a 
woman  coming  to  him,  who  had  had  a  spirit  of  infirmity 
for  now  eighteen  years,  all  bent  over  and  not  able  so  much 
as  to  look  upwards."  The  devil  which  had  possession  of 
her  had  not  only  enfeebled  her  body,  but  had  weighed  her 
heart  earthward,  and  while  he  robbed  her  of  the  sight  of 
her  Saviour,  he  likewise  blotted  out  all  thought  of  calling 
upon  Him  for  help.  Touched  by  so  great  misery  Jesus 
called  her  to  Him. 

"  Woman,"  He  said  to  her,  "  you  are  cured  of  your  in- 
firmity ;"  and  at  the  same  time  He  laid  His  hands  upon 
her. 

Straightening  up  until  she  stood  erect  once  more,  she 
broke  forth  glorifying  God  ;  but  the  ruler  of  the  synagogue 
could  not  brook  this  spectacle  of  Jesus  receiving  homage 
from  his  congregation ;  angered  alike  by  the  prodigy  and 
the  joyous  chorus  of  acclamations,  he  gave  utterance  to 
impatient  words. 

"  During  six  days,"  he  cried,  "  man  may  labor ;  within 
that  time  come  here  to  be  healed,  and  not  upon  the 
Sabbath-day." 

Then  Jesus  replied :  "  Hypocrites !  does  not  each  one  of 
you  loose  his  ox  or  his  ass  from  the  manger  and  lead  them 
to  water  on  the  Sabbath-day  ?  And  ought  not  this  daughter 
of  Abraham,  whom  Satan  has  held  fast  bound  for  eighteen 
years,  be  loosed  from  these  fetters  upon  the  Sabbath-day  ? 2  " 
This  argument  confounded  the  Master's  adversaries,  and 

>  Luke  xiii.  10-17. 

2  Hereupon,  according  to  S.  Luke's  record  (xiii.  18-21),  Jesus  repeated 
to  the  Jews  of  Perea  the  Parables  of  the  mustard  seed  and  the  leaven,  which 
He  had  formerly  uttered  for  the  instruction  of  the  Galileans. 


TIIE  ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  DEDICATION.        99 

the  people  rejoiced  for  all  the  things  that  were  gloriously 
done  by  Him. 

Thus,  then,  the  mission  of  Jesus  on  the  other  side  of  Jor- 
dan had  not  been  altogether  fruitless,  for  men's  hearts  were 
turning  toward  the  new  reign  of  the  Christ ;  yet  along  with 
this  throbbing  expectation  there  were  mingled  feelings  of 
vague  uneasiness.  What  signified  those  words  of  His,  when 
He  said  that  He  would  come  like  a  thief  in  the  night,  or 
like  the  master  who  appears  of  a  sudden  to  surprise  his 
drowsy  household  ? 1  Why  must  they  all  be  watching 
night  and  day  with  girded  loins,  torch  in  hand  ? 2  Would 
the  season  for  entering  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  be  so 
swiftly  fleeting  that  it  behoved  one  to  lay  hold  upon  it 
in  all  haste,  for  the  acceptable  time  once  sped  by  never 
more  would  return  ?  Thoughts  like  these  disquieted  their 
minds,  till  at  last  some  of  the  Jews  broached  the  subject  to 
Jesus. 

"  Lord,"  they  asked,  "  shall  there  be  only  a  few  saved  ? "  3 

The  Master  was  at  no  pains  to  ease  the  burden  of  their 
fears.  He  knew  well  the  obstinate  self-confidence  of  these 
sons  of  Israel,  so  ready  to  believe  themselves  perfect,  if 
only  from  the  simple  fact  that  they  were  God's  people. 
Therefore  He  told  them  again  of  the  narrow  gateway 
whereby  His  Church  is  entered,  which  is  opened  only  by 
the  expenditure  of  efforts  whereof  very  many  are  incapa- 
ble.4 Then  how  would  it  profit  them  at  the  last  moment 
to  have  heard  and  seen  the  Messiah,  when  the  soul  that 
has  not  entered  His  Kingdom  before  death  will  find  the 
door  closed  and  the  Father  of  the  family  retired  within 
doors  ? 

"When  you,  standing  outside,"  continued  Jesus,  "shall 
begin  to  knock,  crying  out :  '  Lord,  open  to  us ! '  and  He 
shall  answer  you:  'I  know  not  whence  you  are,'  then 
you  shall  begin  to  say :  '  We  have  eaten  and  drunk  in  Thy 
Presence,  and  Thou  hast  taught  in  our  public  squares.' 
And  He  shall  say  to  you  :  '  I  know  not  whence  you  are ; 
depart  from  Me,  all  ye  workers  of  iniquity.'     There  shall 

1  Luke  xii,  36-39.  2  Luke  xii.  35. 

8  Luke  xiii.  23.  4  Luke  xiii.  24-30. 


100      THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

lie  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth  when  you  shall  see 
Abraham,  Isaac,  Jacob,  and  all  the  Prophets  in  the  King- 
dom of  God,  and  you  cast  forth  without.  And  they  shall 
come  from  the  east  and  from  the  west,  from  the  north  and 
from  the  south,  and  they  shall  have  their  share  in  the 
banquet." 

They  were  now  upon  the  high-road,  leading  to  the  Holy 
City,  when  Jesus  prophesied  to  the  Jews  that,  though  first 
to  be  called  to  the  heavenly  Kingdom,  they  should  be  the 
last  to  find  the  way  thither.1  That  he  purposed  going  up 
to  Jerusalem  for  the  anniversary  festival  of  the  Dedication 
had  come  to  be  known  to  all,  and  the  Pharisees  of  Perea 
were  much  rejoiced  thereat.  In  their  impatience  to  wit- 
ness His  departure  they  pretended  to  fear  some  outbreak 
of  wrath  from  Herod,  and  so  pressed  Him  to  lly  the 
country. 

"  Leave  these  parts,"  they  urged ;  "  get  away  from  here, 
for  Herod  has  a  mind  to  kill  you."  2 

These  threatening  words  had  little  effect  upon  the  Lord. 
He  informed  His  enemies  that  nothing  would  hinder  His 
fulfilling  His  Mission  to  the  very  end,  and  this  He  would 
do  by  proceeding  onward  toward  the  frontiers  of  Judea,  not 
through  any  fear  of  Herod,  but  in  obedience  to  the  man- 
dates of  Heaven,  which  were  now  beckoning  Him  on  Jeru- 
salemwards.  Then,  branding  the  wretched  policy  of  that 
prince  whose  name  they  had  invoked,  He  responded  to  the 
Pharisees  :  — 

"  Go  and  say  to  that  fox  that  I  shall  cast  out  devils  and 
heal  the  sick  to-day  and  to-morrow,  and  on  the  third  day 
I  shall  have  finished;3  nevertheless,  to-day  and  to-morrow 

1  Luke  xiii.  22. 

2  Luke  xiii.  31-33.  "  Credibile  est  falsum  eos  ramorem  dissipasse  Hero- 
dem  insidiari  Christo,  nee  enim  apud  Evangelistas  legimus  Christum  un- 
nuam  ab  Herode  qnaesitum  ad  mortem"  (Maldonatus,  in  Lf\  xiii.  31). 

a  Greek  writers  do  not  ordinarily  employ  reXei.ovfj.ai  in  the  middle,  hut 
in  the  passive  void'.  The  active  re\e£oi>  having  the  meaning  of  "to  bring 
to  an  end,"  the  passive  signifies  "to  he  brought,  to  come  to  his  end,  to 
attain  an  object  ; "  ami  the  last  meaning  is  that  which  we  adopt  here.  The 
Vulgate's  translation  :  "consummor"  is  scrupulously  exact,  but  we  do 
not  believe  it  ought  to  hi'  understood  in  the  sense  which  critics  often  give 
it,  "that  on  the  Third  Day"  (that  is,  the  third  year  of  His  preaching) 
Jesus  was  "  to  be  consummated  "  by  death. 


THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF   THE  DEDICATION.      101 

and  the  day  following 1  I  must  walk,  for  it  cannot  be  that 
a  Prophet  perish  out  of  Jerusalem."  2 

And  so  at  the  time  appointed  the  Saviour  quitted  the 
realm  of  Herod,  passed  over  the  Jordan,  and  wended  His 
way  through  the  rocky  defiles  which  lead  up  to  the  Holy 
City.  Doubtless  it  was  just  as  He  was  about  to  enter 
within  her  walls  and  at  sight  of  the  multitudes  grouped 
around  her  gates,  that  the  heart  of  Jesus  was  torn  with 
grief  and  He  wept  over  the  ungrateful  city,  foretelling 
that  she  would  see  Him  only  once  again,  that  so  she  might 
welcome  Him  with  a  first  outburst  of  gladness,  and  straight- 
way thereafter  put  Him  to  death. 

"  Jerusalem  !  Jerusalem  ! "  He  cried,  "  thou  that  killest 
the  Prophets  and  stonest  them  that  are  sent  to  thee,  how 
often  would  I  have  gathered  thy  children  as  the  hen  cloth 
her  brood  under  her  wings  !  And  lo  !  your  houses  shall  be 
deserted,  for  I  say  to  you :  You  shall  not  see  Me  until  you 
shall  say,  '  Blessed  be  He  that  cometh  in  the  Name  of  the 
Lord!'"3 

This  sad  foreknowledge  did  not  prevent  Jesus  from  en- 
tering the  streets  of  Jerusalem,  there  to  proffer  her  His 
gift  of  Salvation  for  the  last  time.4  Just  now  the  town 
was  given  over  to  joyous  celebrations,  for  the  Feast  of  the 
Dedication5  was  no  less  brilliant  than  were  those  of  the 
Tabernacles  or  the  Passover.     For  the  space  of  one  week 

1  Most  scholars  interpret  tlie.se  words,  "to-day,  to-morrow,  and  the  day- 
after,"  as  a  manner  of  signifying  "in  a  little  while."  Meyer,  Bleek,  and 
Alford  have  remarked  that  the  Greek  tongue  affords  no  examples  of  this 
phrase  in  an  affirmative  proposition.  It  appears,  therefore,  more  natural 
to  prefer  the  literal  sense,  and  to  understand,  by  these  words,  that  Jesus 
was  to  continue  His  ministry  in  Perea  three  days  longer,  travelling  over 
(as  the  expression  iropeveadai  indicates)  the  villages  of  that  region.  When 
Jesus  repeated  these  words  a  second  time  (Luke  xiii.  33)  did  He  mean,  as 
Wieseler  would  have  Him  (Chronologischc  Synopse,  p.  321),  that  three  days' 
journey  lay  between  Him  and  Jerusalem  ?  We  scarcely  think  so,  but  pre- 
fer to  regard  this  as  a  repetition  of  the  same  thought. 

2  This  was  an  ironical  hyperbole,  whereby  Jesus  endeavored  to  express 
the  extent  of  Jerusalem's  ingratitude,  and  the  cruelty  with  which  she 
abandoned  the  Prophets  to  their  torturers. 

3  Luke  xiii.  34,  35. 

4  John  x.  22. 

5  Even  to  this  day  the  Jews  have  continued  to  call  this  feast  the  Cha- 
iiouea   (n3Jn,    The   Dedication).     The   illuminations  which  took  place 


102      THIRD    YEA  II   OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

the  Jews,  with  palm  branches  in  their  hands,  surged  in 
crowds  through  the  Temple,  with  sacred  songs  commemo- 
rating the  Purification  of  the  Sanctuary  by  the  Maclia- 
bees,  while  every  evening  the  town  was  ablaze  with  lights, 
in  memory  of  that  single  llask  of  oil  which  for  eight  days 
had  sufficed  for  the  needs  of  the  divine  service.1 

Leaving  His  disciples  to  take  part  in  the  least-making, 
Jesus  withdrew  further  into  the  Temple,  till  He  came  to 
►Solomon's  Portico.2  This  gallery  bordered  Kedrou  Ravine, 
and  during  the  sharper  spells  of  winter3  furnished  a  walk 
which  was  exposed  to  the  warm  rays  of  the  sun.  There 
some  of  the  Sanhedrin's  people  caught  sight  of  Jesus,  and 
made  haste  to  gather  round  him. 

"  Until  when,"  they  said,  "  do  you  mean  to  keep  us  in 
suspense  ?     If  you  are  the  Christ,  say  so  openly." 

Jesus  avoided  the  snare  they  were  now  laying  for  Him. 
To  proclaim  Himself  the  Messiah  would  be  to  furnish 
them  with  an  occasion  for  handing  Him  over  to  the  Roman 
authorities.  He  was  content  to  recall  what  He  had  told 
them  as  to  His  Mission,  and  by  what  wondrous  deeds  He 
had  given  proof  thereof.4  Then,  repeating  the  parable  He 
had  given  them  at  the  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles,  He  as- 

every  evening  gave  it  also  the  name  of  Feast  of  Lights  :  ra^Qra  (Joseph us, 
Antiquitates,  xii.  7,  7). 

1  When  the  victorious  Machabees  made  their  way  to  the  Temple,  or  so 
runs  the  ancient  legend,  they  found  but  a  single  vessel  of  oil  which  had 
remained  without  blemish,  still  hearing  the  High-Priest's  seal.  It  would 
scarce  suffice  to  till  the  lamps  for  one  day,  but,  by  a  miracle,  for  the  entire 
week  it  supplied  all  the  needs  of  the  Sanctuary  (Megillat  Antiochos,  p.  145  ; 
Sabbath,  21  b).  Some  say  that  it  was  in  memory  of  this  prodigy  that  the 
Feast  lasted  eight  days  ;  others  have  it  that  this  number  recalled  the  time 
which  the  Machabees  spent  in  reelecting  the  altar  and  restoring  the  sacred 
vessels  (Derenbourg,  Histoire  de  la  Palestine,  p.  62). 

"■  John  x.  23,  21.  This  portico  was  given  Solomon's  name  because  it 
had  been  constructed  from  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  Temple  (Josephus, 
Antiquitates,  xx.  9,  7). 

'•'•  The  Anniversary  of  the  Dedication  was  solemnized  on  the  twenty-fifth 
of  Kisleu,  which,  according  to  Wieseler,  fell  this  year  on  the  twentieth  of 
December.  S.  John  says  expressly  that  it  occurred  in  winter:  xeLP-uv  ty 
(John  x.  22).  The  Purification  of  the  Temple,  which  they  commemorated 
on  this  day,  took  place  in  164  B.  C,  six  years  and  a  half  after  Antiochus 
Epiphanius  destroyed  the  Holy  Place  (1  Mac.  iv.  52-59  ;  2  Mac.  x.  1-8  ; 
Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xii.  7,  7). 

4  John  x.  25-SO. 


THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF   THE  DEDICATION.    103 

sured  them  anew  "  that  He  was  their  Shepherd,  that  if 
they  were  willing  to  be  His  sheep,  following  Him  and 
hearkening  to  His  voice,  having  Him  for  their  Safeguard 
and  their  "Watchman,  they  might  rest  in  sweet  security,  for 
the  Father  had  communicated  unto  Him  His  attributes, 
that  divine  Power  which  is  above  all  things  whatsoever ; 
yet  no  one  is  able  to  wrest  aught  from  the  hand  of  the 
Father."  And  then  He  added :  "  My  Father  and  I  are 
but  One." 

The  essential  vigor  of  these  mighty  words  would  alone 
have  made  their  meaning  clearly  manifest.  By  them  Jesus 
declared  Himself  their  God,  —  not  simply  united  to  the 
Father  by  faith  and  love,  but  having  only  the  one  same 
Substance  with  Him.  And  it  was  in  this  sense  the  Jews 
understood  His  words,  for  they  snatched  up  stones,  think- 
ing to  stone  Him.1  With  a  word  Jesus  quelled  their 
madness. 

"  I  have  done  in  your  presence,"  He  said  to  them, 
"  many  good  works  from  My  Father ;  for  which  one  are 
you  now  about  to  stone  Me  ? " 

"Tis  not  for  any  good  work  that  we  intend  to  stone 
you."  they  made  answer,  "  but  for  blasphemy,  and  because, 
being  a  man,  you  make  yourself  God." 

And  the  Lord  was  moved  to  pity  by  their  blindness; 
He  showed  them  how,  in  the  Holy  Books,  Jehovah  had 
Himself  announced  and  foreshadowed  this  Mystery  which 
was  so  abhorrent  to  their  minds.  Not  content  with  hav- 
ing appeared  to  their  fathers  under  a  human  form,  to  prove 
that  He  did  not  deem  our  flesh  unworthy  to  be  united  with 
His  Divinity  He  had  even  bestowed  his  incommunicable 
Name  upon  the  judges  of  Israel.  "  You  are  the  Gods  of 
earth,"  He  had  said  ;  "  you  are  all  sons  of  the  Most  High."  2 
Since  the  Voice  of  Infallibility,  and  the  words  of  Scripture, 
which  can  never  perish,  had  both  attributed  this  title  to 

1  John  x.  31-33. 

2  John  x.  34-36.  These  words  are  taken  from  Psalm  Ixxxi.,  where  Jeho- 
vah, in  the  congregation  of  Heaven,  uttered  stern  and  reproachful  words 
to  the  untrustworthy  judges.  As  to  the  words  cyu  elira,  they  are  in  refer- 
ence to  numerous  passages  of  scripture  in  which  the  judges  are  called  gods 
(Exod.  xxi.  6  ;  xxii.  9,  28,  etc. ). 


Hl-4      THIRD    YEAR   OF   THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

mere  creatures,  how  durst  these  enemies  of  the  Christ 
accuse  Him  of  blasphemy  for  that  He  said :  "I  am  the 
Sou  of  God  ? " 

Nor  did  Jesus  confine  Himself  to  reducing  them  to 
silence  by  this  personal  argument ;  He  proceeded  to  fortify 
His  position  by  means  of  those  Marvels  which  the  Father 
had  worked  by  Him,  in  order  to  evidence  that  He  was 
with  Him  and  in  Him,  and  so  concluded  by  disclosing  His 
Divinity  more  plainly  than  ever  before.1 

"  My  Father  is  in  Me,"  He  said,  "  and  1  in  My  Father."  7 

Upon  these  words  the  Sanhedrin  rushed  upon  Him  to 
seize  Him,  but  He  escaped  out  of  their  hands  and  went 
forth  from  the  Temple. 

Once  again  He  had  made  it  appear  that  the  princes  of 
Juda  were  obstinately  determined  to  reject  His  proffered 
gifts  ;  and  thereupon  He  quitted  Jerusalem  and  returned  to 
the  other  side  of  Jordan,  into  the  land  of  Perea  which  had 
aforetime  given  Him  kindly  welcome.  Henceforth  it  was 
to  be  the  only  part  of  Israel  where  the  Incarnate  Truth 
might  find  patient  listeners ;  indeed  it  would  appear  that 
this  region  remained  faithful  unto  the  end,  for  scarcely  had 
Jesus  revisited  the  places  where  John  had  baptized  when 
the  country-people  flocked  about  Him  again. 

"  John  did  not  do  any  miracle,"  they  said,  "  but  every- 
thing that  John  said  of  this  Man  was  true.  And  many 
believed  in  Jesus." 

l  John  x.  37-39. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

JESUS'  LAST  SOJOURN   IN   PEREA. 


I.    The  Man  with  Dropsy,  and  the  Second  Banquet 
with  the  Pharisees. 

Luke  xiv.  1-35. 

Just  about  this  time  one  of  the  foremost  Pharisees  of 
Perea  gave  a  great  dinner  to  certain  of  his  friends,  and,  in 
accordance  with  Jewish  customs,  chose  a  Sabbath-day x  for 
this  social  gathering.  After  He  had  been  invited  to  the 
festivities  Jesus  found  that  He  was  again  hemmed  about 
by  a  circle  of  hostile  guests.  From  the  outset  they  watched 
His  bearing  with  malignant  inquisitiveness,  for  they  had 
all  noted  the  fact  that  in  the  crowd  of  onlookers  stood  a 
man  afflicted  with  dropsy,  upon  whom  the  Lord  had  fixed 
His  compassionate  gaze.  The  poor  invalid,  intimidated  by 
the  presence  of  all  these  doctors,  dared  not  so  much  as  ask 
to  be  cured. 

"  Would  Jesus  venture  to  take  the  initiative  and  violate 
the  Sabbath  before  their  eyes  ? " 

1  Luke  xiv.  1-6.  However  strictly  the  Jews  observed  the  Sabbatic 
Rest,  they  never  forbade  social  rejoicings  upon  that  day,  and  even  preferred 
to  use  this  enforced  leisure  for  giving  great  banquets  (2  Esdras,  viii.  9-12  ; 
Tob.  ii.  1)  :  their  only  restriction  was  that  they  must  have  everything  in 
readiness  on  the  eve  of  the  feast.  It  was  not  long  before  these  Sabbath- 
day  repasts  degenerated  into  orgies,  insomuch  that  Plutarch  reproached 
the  Jews  of  his  time  with  consecrating  the  Day  of  the  Lord  to  gluttony 
and  drunkenness  (Plutarch,  Qitcestionum  convivalium,  lib.  iv,  6,  2  ;  S.  John 
Chrysostom,  De  Lazaro,  Homilia  i.  ;  S.  Augustine  in  Psalm  xxxii,  2  : 
xci.  1). 


106      THIRD  YEAR   OF  THE  MIXISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Reading  aright  the  evil  workings  of  their  minds,  the 
Saviour  unmasked  them. 

"  Is  it  lawful,"  He  demanded  brusquely,  "  to  heal  on  a 
Sabbath-day  ? " 

Divided  between  the  prejudices  of  their  sect  and  the 
fear  of  appearing  devoid  of  pity,  the  Pharisees  looked  at 
one  another  and  found  no  one  ready  to  reply.  Their 
silence  left  the  Saviour  full  liberty  of  action.  "  Taking 
the  sick  man,  He  healed  him  aud  sent  him  away."  Then, 
addressing  the  Pharisees,  He  declared  (as  once  before,  in 
the  case  of  the  crippled  woman)  that  He  was  justified  by 
their  own  conduct.  For,  in  fact,  there  was  no  one  among 
them  who,  if  he  saw  his  ass 1  or  his  ox  fall  into  a  pit  on  a 
Sabbath-day,  would  not  draw  the  creature  out.  So,  then,  if 
they  spared  neither  trouble  nor  labor  for  a  poor  beast,  what 
reason  could  they  possibly  allege  for  teaching  that  to  heal 
their  fellow-man  was  a  violation  of  the  Sacred  Rest  ?  The 
argument  did  not  admit  of  any  reply ;  neither  the  Scribes 
nor  the  Pharisees  broke  the  silence,  but,  as  if  to  conceal 
their  vexation,  with  great  bustle  and  confusion  betook 
themselves  to  the  festal  board. 

Following  the  fashion  of  the  times,  the  table  was  ranged 
in  the  central  space  and  surrounded  by  couches  which 
accommodated  at  least  three  persons  at  a  time ;  on  each 
the  place  of  honor  was  in  the  middle,  and  the  guests 
rushed  eagerly  to  secure  this  position.2  Jesus  could  not 
witness  such  puerile  vanity  displayed  by  these  Doctors  of 
the  Law  without  showing  them  to  what  humiliations  they 
laid  themselves  liable.  Should  any  important  personage 
enter  during  the  feast  some  one  must  needs  step  down  and 
give  him  place,  to  his  own  great  mortification.  Wiser  by 
far  is  the  humble  man,  who  can  only  be  bidden  to  go  up 

1  Here  we  have  retained  the  reading  6vos,  which  seems  sufficiently  estab- 
lished by  the  authority  of  the  Vulgate  and  the  Codex  Sinaiticus.  The 
Syriac  Version,  the  Alexandrian  MS.,  and  that  of  the  Vatican  give  the 
reading  vUs,  which  is  the  one  preferred  by  modem  editors.  If  the  latter 
form  be  adopted,  the  meaning  of  the  phrase  must  be  slightly  modified  : 
"  Which  one  of  you,  if  his  son  or  even  his  ox  fall  into  a  ditch  on  the 
Sabbath-day,  does  not  at  once  draw  him  out  ?  " 

2  Luke  xiv.  7-11. 


SECOND  BANQUET   WITH  THE  PHARISEES.     107 

higher  than  the  low  station  which  he  has  chosen  for  him- 
self; for  on  earth,  as  in  Heaven,  "he  who  exalts  himself 
shall  be  humbled,  and  he  who  humbles  himself  shall  be 
exalted." 

Meanwhile  the  repast  was  being  set  out, —  the  object  of 
longing  glances  from  the  poor  folk  who  were,  crowding 
about  the  portals  of  the  hall,  or  passing  back  and  forth  at 
a  respectful  distance  from  the  diners  ;  there  was  every  sort 1 
of  human  wretchedness  collected  there,  —  cripples  in  rags, 
maimed  men,  blind  beggars,  all  attracted  thither  by  the 
sounds  of  feasting,  or  perhaps  by  the  hope  that  the  Master 
would  somehow  lighten  their  load  of  misery. 

Jesus  called  His  host's  attention  to  this  sorrowful  throng, 
telling  him  that  he  would  have  done  better  had  he  bidden 
these  unfortunates  to  his  feast  rather  than  his  friends,  his 
brethren,  his  kindred,  and  his  wealthy  neighbors.  Truly, 
the  latter  would  invite  him  in  their  turn ;  but,  however 
sumptuous  their  entertainments  might  be,  they  could  never 
afford  him  that  which  God  has  given  into  the  hands  of  the 
poor,  to  be  a  recompense  unto  their  benefactors,  —  the 
gladness  of  the  heavenly  Banqueting. 

To  the  Scribes  there  was  nothing  that  savored  more  of 
intolerable  assurance  than  such  statements  as  this,  —  that 
these  miserable  people,  whom  they  disdained,  should  ever 
acquire  any  preeminence  or  any  power  of  bestowing  eternal 
benefits. 

Now  one  of  these  scholars,  interrupting  the  Christ,  as- 
serted that  in  the  coming  Kingdom  of  the  Messiah  his 
place  had  been  marked  out  for  him  beforehand,  and  he 
loudly  congratulated  himself  on  that  account  :2  — 

"  Happy  man,  who  shall  sit  at  the  banquet  in  the 
Kingdom  of  Heaven!" 

Jesus  replied  to  this  boast  by  describing  the  heavenly 
Festival  by  means  of  a  comparison. 

"A  certain  man,"  He  began,  "made  a  great  feast  and 

1  Luke  xiv.  12-14.  Jesus  makes  use  of  such  precise  terms  in  designating 
them,  as  to  make  it  evident  that  He  was  actually  observing  them  at  the 
moment  of  speaking. 

2  Luke  xiv.  15-24. 


108       THIRD  YEAH  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

invited  a  goodly  company ;  at  the  hour  for  dining  he  sent 
out  a  servant  to  apprise  those  who  were  bidden  that  they 
should  come,  for  now  everything  was  ready ;  but  they  ail 
with  one  consent  began  to  excuse  themselves.  The  first 
said  to  him  :  — 

"'I  have  bought  a  parcel  of  ground,  I  must  needs  go  out 
and  see  it;  I  beg  that  you  will  have  me  excused.' 

"'I  have  bought  five  yoke  of  oxen  and  am  just  about 
going  to  try  them,' another  said;  '1  beg  that  you  will  have 
me  excused.' 

" '  I  have  taken  a  wife,'  said  another,  '  and  therefore  I 
cannot  come.' 

"  But  when  the  servant  returned  he  gave  this  report  to  his 
master.  Then  the  goodman  of  the  household,  being  wroth, 
said  to  his  servant :  — 

" '  Go  into  the  squares  and  to  the  street  corners  and  bring 
hither  the  poor  and  maimed,  without  delay.' 

" '  Lord,  it  has  been  done  as  you  ordered,'  the  servant 
said,  'and  yet  there  is  room.' 

"  Then  the  master  said  to  the  servant :  — 

" '  Go  out  into  the  highways  and  alongside  the  hedges ; 1 
and  compel  them  to  enter  here,  in  order  that  my  house  may 
be  filled.' " 

In  this  Parable  there  was  nothing  lacking  for  the  feast 
that  could  be  laid  to  the  master's  door;  the  table  was 
decked  with  all  magnificence,  the  guests  were  a  goodly 
company.  Not  content  with  the  mere  formal  invitation, 
but  faithfully  following  the  cordial  custom  of  Eastern 
countries,  he  had  despatched  his  servant  to  acquaint  them 
of  the  hour  when  the  banquet  was  ready  to  be  set  forth.2 
So,  for  now  three  years,  the  Princes  of  the  House  of  Israel 
had  likewise  heard  the  pleading  accents  of  the  Divine  Mas- 
ter, but,  one  and  all,  they  had  still  refused  to  listen  to  Him. 

1  Qpayixofc  (from  (ppaacru,  to  enclose)  :  tlie  thorn -bush  hedges  which 
surround  a  vineyard,  and  consequently  the  footpath  which  runs  between 
these  barriers. 

-  Now-a-days  too,  in  the  Arabs'  camps  and  villages,  at  the  meal  hour, 
you  still  hear  this  same  invitation  :  "Come,  the  feast  is  all  ready  !  "  And 
to  refuse  to  attend  is  a  serious  insult  (Thomson,  The  Land  and  tlie  Book; 
I.  chap.  ix.). 


SECOND  BANQUET   WITH  THE  PHARISEES.     109 

The  wrath  of  their  heavenly  Father  was  kindled  at  such 
contemptuous  tokens ;  and  therefore,  disowning  these  great 
folks  of  Judea,  He  had  commanded  that  the  poor  and  the 
ciipples,  the  blind  and  the  maimed  be  brought  unto  Him. 

Round  about  the  very  board  at  which  He  uttered  this 
Parable,  Jesus  could  point  to  these  outcasts  of  Israel,  who 
were  eagerly  hastening  to  hear  His  voice  and  to  take  their 
place  at  the  celestial  banquet.  Nor  would  they  be  the 
only  ones  to  find  their  way  thither ;  for  the  master,  seeing 
there  were  still  empty  spaces,  gives  orders  to  his  servants 
to  go  outside  the  town,  and  bring  any  strangers  into  his 
house.  By  these  words  Jesus  proclaimed  the  Calling  of 
the  Gentiles.  And  though  these  Pharisees,  so  puffed  up 
with  their  earthly  ancestry,  did  not  comprehend  Him  fully, 
they  at  least  could  not  fail  to  know  that  the  Saviour  had 
disinherited  them ;  for,  putting  aside  all  obscurities,  He  de- 
clared to  these  guests  seated  around  Him  "  that  not  one  of 
those  men  who  were  invited  should  taste  of  His  Banquet." 

This  sentence  is  the  last  which  Saint  Luke  reports  as 
spoken  at  this  meal.1  Immediately  afterward  he  tells 
how  Jesus  departed  from  the  festal  hall,  followed  by  great 
throngs,  while  doubtless  the  poor  and  infirm  were  with 
Him,  drawn  to  His  side  by  the  promises  which  they  had 
just  heard  from  His  lips.  But  to  their  simple  minds,  the 
new  rule  of  the  Messiah,  His  throne  and  His  feastmaking 
could  not  but  resemble  those  for  which  the  world  is  so 
greedy.  Jesus  undeceived  them  ;  turning  toward  them  He 
warned  them  that,  in  desiring  to  be  His  disciples  they 
were  aspiring  to  a  life  of  sacrifice.  They  must  needs  set 
His  love  high  above  all  things  else,  must  forego  their  own 
tenderest  ties  of  affection  as  soon  as  ever  they  should  be- 
come an  obstacle  to  salvation,  breaking  with  all  things  else, 
hating  all  things  else,  "  father,  mother,  wife  and  children, 
brothers  and  sisters,  everything,  —  even  their  own  soul." 

"Mad,  indeed,  is  that  man  who  would  begin  to  build  a 

tower  without  having  wherewithal  to  complete  it !     The 

king  who  would  engage  his  scanty  armament  in  war  with 

a  formidable  foe  would  be  a  madman  indeed !     The  dis- 

i  Luke  xiv.  25-35. 


11(1      THIRD    YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS, 

comfiture  of  each  would  be  equally  certain.  80  is  it  with 
the  man  who  desires  to  be  the  disciple  of  Jesus  without 
renouncing  all  that  he  possesses."  Very  soon  lie  shall  be- 
come but  a  traitor  and  an  apostate.  Thereupon  the  Lord 
concluded  with  those  words  which,  in  His  preaching,  al- 
ways denoted  that  the  lesson  just  uttered  contains  a  truth 
of  paramount  importance  :  — 

"  They  that  have  ears  to  hear  let  them  hear  ! " 

II.    The  Parables  upon  Divine  Mercy. 

Luke  xv.  1-32. 

During  these  last  days  the  Christ  had  given  to  the  pre- 
cepts of  Christian  abnegation  a  severer  form,  while  at  the 
same  time  He  spoke  more  openly  than  ever  before  of  the 
tender  mercies  of  His  Father.  Whether  it  was  that  He 
felt  moved  to  display  a  greater  sympathy  for  sorrowful 
mortals  the  longer  He  Himself  suffered  our  infirmities,1  or 
whether,  seeing  His  end  draw  on  apace,  He  was  the  more 
eager  to  hurry  the  strayed  sheep  within  His  fold,  —  at  this 
period  His  words  did  indeed  breathe  an  ineffable  tender- 
ness, His  sighs  and  His  tears  were  oftener  wrung  from 
Him,2  and  the  words  of  His  Parables  grow  always  more 
heart-stirring.  Those  whereby  the  Master  expressed  the 
depth  and  breadth  of  Divine  Love  deserve  to  be  distin- 
guished from  among  all  the  rest. 

He  proffered  them  as  an  answer  to  fresh  mutterings  from 
the  Scribes ;  for  these  sectaries,  after  their  humiliation  at 
the  Pharisees'  table,  were  become  in  Perea,  as  much  as  else- 
where, His  implacable  enemies ;  and  they  now  reproached 
the  Christ  for  associating  with  none  but  the  vilest  sinners. 

"Why!  in  sooth,  one  would  think  all  the  publicans  in 
the  country3  were  like  to  gather  around  him !" 

With  a  gesture,  pointing  to  the  attentive  throngs,  Jesus 

l"E/j.a8ev  a<j>    &v  etra.de   (Hebr,  v.  8). 
2  Mark  vii.  34  ;  viii.  12  ;  Luke  ix.  41  ;  John  xi.  33,  35. 
8  Uavres  (Luke   xv.    1).      The    Vulgate   omits   this   word   so   full   of 
meaning. 


THE  PARABLES   UPON   DIVINE  MERCY.         Ill 

replied  to  the  grumblers  wlio  were  so  blind  as  to  make 
small  account  of  that  priceless  array  of  souls  \l — 

"  What  man  is  there  among  you,"  He  said,  "  who,  though 
lie  has  a  hundred  sheep,  if  he  lose  one  of  them  does  not 
leave  the  ninety  and  nine  others  in  the  wilderness,  and  go 
after  the  one  which  is  lost,  until  he  find  it  ?  And,  after  he 
finds  it,  he  lays  it  over  his  shoulder  with  gladness,  and 
comiDg  to  his  home,  calls  together  friends  and  neighbors, 
saying:  — 

" '  Eejoice  with  me,  for  I  have  found  my  lost  sheep.'  2 

"Even  so,  I  tell  you,  there  shall  be  more  of  joy  in  Heaven 
over  one  sinner  who  does  penance,  than  over  ninety-nine 
just  men  who  need  not  penance  Or  again,  what  woman 
is  there,  who,  if  she  has  ten  drachmas  and  she  lose  one  of 
them,  does  not  light  the  lamp  and  sweep  the  house  and 
search  carefully  until  she  find  it  ?  And  after  she  has 
found  it  she  calls  her  friends  and  neighbors  together, 
saying :  — 

" '  Eejoice  with  me,  for  I  have  found  the  drachma  which 
I  had  lost.' 

"  So  I  tell  you  that  there  shall  be  joy  in  the  sight  of 
God's  Angels  over  one  sinner  doing  penance." 

Evidently  these  first  gracious  similitudes  scarcely  touched 
the  Pharisees,  for  Jesus  proceeded  to  exalt  further  the  di- 
vine Loving-kindness.  This  He  did  in  one  of  His  most 
beautiful  Parables,  —  reciting  the  sad  misconduct  of  a  spend- 
thrift younger  son,3  who  had  extorted  from  his  father  his 

1  Luke  xv.  1-10. 

2  The  Saviour  is  indeed  obliged  to  go  to  its  aid  :  the.  sinful  soul  gradu- 
ally loses  all  strength,  as  it  wanders  further  away  from  God,  and  would  lie 
in  helpless  abandonment,  powerless  to  return  home,  were  it  not  for  the 
Good  Shepherd  Who  hastens  after  the  strayed  lamb,  catches  it  up,  and 
bears  it  back  upon  His  shoulders.  Thus,  in  truth,  the  Mission  of  the 
Christ  was  to  go  in  quest  of  sinners  :  it  was  His  glory  to  stoop  down  even 
unto  their  lowliness  and  abasement.  In  times  when  the  persecuted  Church 
had  to  conceal  her  faith,  the  Good  Shepherd  was  the  figure  oftenest  em- 
ployed to  represent  Jesus.  We  encounter  it  everywhere,  in  the  paintings 
of  the  Catacombs,  on  the  sacred  vessels,  graven  on  gems,  and  set  in  finger- 
rings  (see  Martigny,  Dicfionnaire  des  Avfiquite's  chre'tiennes  :  Pasteur). 

a  Luke  xv  11-32.  The  term  prodigal  S.  Luke  applies,  not  to  the  young 
man,  but  to  the  life  he  led  :  $Giv  &<twtws.  "Actwtos  =  d  awfeiv  :  one  who 
loses  or  wastes  his  goods. 


112       THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

iiwn  share  of  the  inheritance.1  Never  did  the  Lord  picture 
the  sinner's  wanderings  with  vivider  colors ,  every  touch 
in  the  likeness  stirs  the  soul,  and  brings  back  the  features 
of  our  own  life-story  before  our  eyes.  For  what  man  of  us 
is  there  who  has  lived  in  this  world  without  knowing, 
without  seeing  all  round  him,  those  very  illusions  which 
befooled  this  prodigal  boy, —  that  thirst  for  an  unbridled 
and  unhampered  liberty  which  devoured  him  ?  Who  has 
not  felt  himself  to  be  within  a  vain,  strange  land,  where  he 
is  living  an  existence  altogether  without  God  ?  First  comes 
that  passing  intoxication  of  freedom,  and  then  the  awful 
anguish  which  clutches  his  awakening  soul,  as  he  lies,  sick 
at  heart,  with  an  infinite  yearning  void  within  him  which 
his  passions  are  powerless  to  satisfy,  and  with  the  bitter 
sense  of  his  enthralment  in  the  companionship  of  a  filthy 
herd.2  Happy  is  the  man  who  amid  this  heart-heaviness 
lifts  his  eyes  Heavenward,  rises  up,  and  returns  unto 
his  God !  Thrice  happy  is  that  soul,  which,  when  over- 
whelmed with  the  realization  of  its  sins,  remembers 
the  forgiveness  whereof  Jesus  held  forth  such  marvellous 
tokens ! 

"  While  the  ruined  spendthrift  is  still  afar  off,  his  father 
sees  him  ;  he  is  filled  with  pitifulness  for  his  boy,  makes 
haste  toward  him,  falls  upon  his  neck,3  and  kisses  him. 
And  the  son  says  to  him :  — 

" '  Father,  I  have  sinned  against  Heaven  and  before  you. 
I  am  not  worthy  to  be  called  your  son ! ' 

"  But   the  father  says   to    his   servants :   '  Bring   forth 

1  As  the  prodigal  had  an  elder  brother,  according  to  the  Jewish  law  he 
was  entitled  to  receive  a  half  of  the  share  reserved  to  the  latter. 

2  "And  he  would  fain  have  filled  his  belly  with  the  husks  which  the 
swine  eat,  and  tio  one  gave  them  to  him."  Kepdna,  fruit  of  the  Carob- 
tree  ;  "S.  John's  Bread "  (Ceratonia  Siliqua,  Linn.),  long  crescent-shaped 
pods,  filled  witli  broad  black  beans  of  an  insipid  flavor  ;  they  are  still  used 
as  food  for  cattle,  and  sometimes  also  eaten  by  poor  people. 

3  "Note  the  word  :  he  does  nut  throw  himself  upon  his  neck,  he  falls, 
his  strength  fails  him,  he  sinks  down  ;  he  is  the  one  who  stoops,  it  would 
seem  as  though  he  wants  to  have  no  other  prop  for  his  failing  powers  than 
this  dear  boy  whom  he  has  recovered,  and  he  so  overwhelms  him  with 
good  things  that  the  upright  son,  who  had  never  been  lacking  in  filial 
duty,  seems  to  have  some  reason  for  his  show  of  jealousy  "  (Bossuet,  ite- 
traite  sur  la  I'Unitencc,  10e  jour.). 


THE  PARABLES   UPON  DIVINE  MERCY.         113 

quickly  the  richest  robe1  and  put  it  on  him,  and  place  a 
ring2 on  his  hand,  and  shoes  on  his  feet  And  bring  hither 
the  fatted  calf  and  kill  it :  let  us  eat  and  make  good  cheer ! 
For  tins  son  of  mine  was  dead  and  is  brought  to  life  again; 
he  was  lost  and  is  found.' " 

The  listening  throngs  were  stirred  and  thrilled  by  this 
narrative,  even  as,  since  that  day,  so  many  repentant  souls 
have  recognized  its  comfortable  power.  For  a  short  space 
the  Master  left  them  to  revolve  His  words  silently  in  their 
hearts,  but  at  length,  looking  upon  the  surly  group  of  His 
enemies,  still  standing  along  with  the  people,  He  added  a 
word  or  two  for  them  :  — 

"The  elder  son  of  the  family  was  on  his  way  home 
from  the  fields  just  as  the  merry-making  began ;  his 
ears  caught  the  loud  quiring  of  musicians,  the  dancers' 
light  laughter.3 

"'What  might  all  this  mean?'  he  asked  himself;  and 
learning  that  his  brother  had  returned  he  grew  indignant 
and  refused  to  enter  the  house.  Then  the  father  came 
out  to  him,  and  began  to  entreat  him.  But  he,  making 
answer,  said :  — 

" '  See  how  many  years  I  have  served  you  and  never 
neglected  one  of  your  commandments,  yet  never  have  you 
given  me  a  kid  to  make  merry  with  my  friends.  Yet 
so  soon  as  this  other  son  returns,  who  has  squandered 
his  portion  with  harlots,  you  kill  the  fatted  calf  for 
him.' 

"  And  the  father  said  :  '  My  son,  you  are  always  with  me, 
and  everything  that  is  mine  is  yours.  But  it  was  fitting 
that  we  should  make  high  festival  and  rejoice,  because  your 

1  2to\t]i>  tt\v  wpuTriv.  the  first  robe,  that  is  to  say  the  most  precious  :  tt)v 
TifiLUTdrriv  (Euthymius).  Here  there  can  be  no  question  of  the  robe  which 
the  prodigal  wore  before  his  departure,  "  vestein  priorem"  (Tertullian), 
since  there  is  no  reason  for  fancying  that  he  left  it  behind  him  when  first 
quitting  his  father's  mansion. 

2  A  ring  was  the  distinctive  mark  of  freemen  and  persons  of  quality 
(James  ii.  2;  Gen.  xli.  42).  The  same  was  true  of  sandals,  for  slaves 
always  went  barefoot. 

3  The  ancients  had  choruses  of  musicians  and  dancers  to  appear  during 
their  feast-making  ;  they  were  either  chosen  from  among  the  slaves  of  the 
household  or  hired  for  the  occasion. 


114      THIRD   YEAR   OF  TUE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

brother  was  dead  and  is  come  to  life  once  more ;  lie  was 
lost  and  is  found  again."' 1 

So  the  thin  veil  which  enveloped  the  Parable  had  be- 
come quite  transparent  Tins  discontented  son  was  the 
Jewish  people,  her  Doctors  especially,  so  boastful  of  the. 
fact  that  they  were  the  first-born  of  Jehovah,  and  destined 
to  inherit  everything  which  is  His  on  earth,  —  the  Temple, 
the  Law,  His  Holy  Word.  Did  these  sectaries,  eaten  up 
with  their  own  self-importance,  recognize  the  likeness  in 
this  portrait  ?  did  they  at  all  comprehend  that  Jesus  val- 
ued tears  of  penitence  far  above  any  hypocritical  right- 
eousness ?  that  he  was  bidding  all  sinful  men  repent,  and 
thereby  opened  wide  to  them  the  celestial  banquet  and  the 
Kingdom  of  God  ?  The  Pharisees'  sullen  and  obstinate 
blindness  hardly  admits  of  our  hazarding  any  such  conjec- 
ture ;  but  though  the  Parable  of  the  prodigal  lad  seemed 
only  another  stumbling-block  to  them,  it  has  since  saved 
numberless  sinners  from  despair,  for  it  assures  them  that 
the  loving-kindness  of  their  heavenly  Father  is  unbounded, 
free,  and  knows  no  end. 

1  "  On  reading  this  outburst  of  the  greatly  moved  father  .  .  .  we  might 
be  tempted  to  believe  that  a  higher  value  is  set  upon  penitence  than  upon 
innocence  itself,  and  that  the  prodigal  upon  his  return  received  richer  gifts 
of  grace  than  his  elder  brother,  who  had  never  wandered  from  home  and 
father.  The  other  is  still  the  eldest  son,  however,  and  just  the  few  words 
his  father  speaks  to  him  are  enough  to  show  that  he  has  not  lost  his  birth- 
right :  "My  son,"  he  tells  him,  "you  are  always  with  me,  and  everything 
that  I  have  is  yours."  Sometimes,  in  like  manner,  our  hearts  arc  moved 
with  a  swift  delight  by  the  unhoped-for  sweetness  of  a  beautiful  winter's 
day  which,  after  long  weeks  of  storm  and  rain,  does  indeed  gladden  the 
face  of  earth  with  a  sudden  surprise  ;  37et,  even  so,  none  the  less  would  we 
prefer  the  constant  serenity  of  a  more  benignant  season.  If  we  may  be 
allowed  to  illustrate  the  Saviour's  sentiments  by  such  human  feelings,  He 
is  more  strongly  moved  by  the  conversion  of  sinners  who  come  to  be  His 
new  subjects,  but  He  reserves  a  more  affectionate  familiarity  for  the  right- 
eous, who  are  His  old  and  never-failing  friends  "  (Bossuet,  Oraison  funi.br* 
de  Marie-  Th&rese). 


THE   UNFAITHFUL  STEWARD.  115 

III.    The  Unfaithful  Steward.  —  The  Wicked  Eich 

Man. 

Luke  xvi.  1-31  ;  xvii.  1-10. 

Just  about  this  time  Jesus  gave  the  Pharisees  further 
cause  for  bitter  dislike  of  Him.  We  know  how  boundless 
was  their  love  of  wealth  ; 1  only  desirous  of  temporal  bless- 
ings they  asked  for  nothing  beyond  "  the  dews  of  heaven 
and  the  fatness  of  earth  ;"2  but  though  this  abundance,  of 
old  promised  to  the  Synagogue,  had  ever  been  and  as  yet 
remained  their  portion,  such  was  not  to  be  the  case  in  the 
new  Eealm  of  Jesus.  Wealth  was  something  to  be  dreaded, 
—  so  said  the  Master ;  for  He  knew  that  it  spreads  an  in- 
visible net  round  about  the  soul,  immeshing  it  and  dragging 
it  to  earth.  Therefore  He  never  let  pass  any  occasion  for 
denouncing  it  to  His  disciples  as  an  enemy  and  a  deceiver. 
The  cunning  stratagem  of  a  dishonest  agent,  which  had 
been  brought  to  light,  doubtless,  just  at  this  time  and  in 
this  very  region  which  the  Saviour  was  now  traversing, 
furnished  Him  with  an  opportunity  for  renewing  His 
warnings. 

"  There  was  a  rich  man,"  He  began,3  "  who  had  a  steward, 
and  the  man  was  accused  before  him  of  having  wasted  his 
goods.     He  called  him,  and  said  to  him:  — 

" '  What  is  this  I  hear  them  say  of  you  ?  Eender  an  ac- 
count of  your  administration,  for  hereafter  you  shall  no 
longer  manage  for  me.' 

"  The  steward  mused  within  himself:  'What  shall  I  do, 
since  my  master  will  take  the  administration  of  his  prop- 
erty away  from  me  ?  I  have  not  the  strength  to  labor  on 
the  earth,  and  I  am  ashamed  to  beg.  I  know  what  I  will 
do,  so  that  when  I  shall  be  removed  from  my  trust,  there 
may  be  some  who  will  receive  me  into  their  houses.' 

"Accordingly,  having  called  each  one  of  his  master's 
debtors,  he  said  to  the  first :  — 

" '  How  much  do  you  owe  my  master  ? ' 

1  Luke  xvi.  14.  a  Gen.  xxvii.  28.  8  Luke  xvi.  1-9. 


11G      Till Ul >   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"'A  hundred  barrels  of  oil,'  he  answered. 

"'Take  back  your  bund'  the  steward  told  him;  'sit 
down  at  once  and  write  "  Fifty.'- ' 

"Thereupon  he  said  to  another  — 

"'And  how  much  do  you  owe  ?' 

"'A  hundred  measures  of  wheat,'  he  said. 

" '  Take  back  your  bill,'  was  the  reply,  '  and  write 
"Eighty."' 

"And  his  master  praised  this  unfaithful  servant  for  that 
he  had  dealt  prudently." 

That  Jesus  held  up  this  fellow's  rascality  for  His  disci- 
ples' consideration  was  not  because  He  approved  of  trickery 
and  craftiness,  but  because  He  wished  to  remind  them  "  how 
much  more  watchful  and  wary,  in  compassing  their  schemes, 
are  the  children  of  this  world  than  are  the  children  of 
light!"1 

"  And  do  you  likewise,"  He  told  them,  "  make  friends  for 
yourselves  of  these  riches  of  iniquity,  so  that  when  you 
shall  happen  to  be  in  need2  they  may  receive  you  into  the 
eternal  tabernacles." 

The  hardihood  with  which  Jesus  proffered  His  followers 
this  striking  illustration  has  astonished  the  world,  yet  it 
reveals  at  the  same  time  that  contempt  with  which  the 
Saviour  regarded  man's  craving  for  money.  In  His  eyes 
riches  appear,  as  it  were,  altogether  stripped  of  any  value, 
except  that  of  being  emptied  into  the  outstretched  hands 
of  the  poor,  and  thereby  commuted  into  everlasting  treas- 
ures. Here,  as  on  many  other  occasions,  Jesus  is  giving 
His  own  a  suggestion,  more  than  He  is  laying  down  a  law. 
By  treating  wealth  as  iniquitous  3  He  does  not  deny  that 
riches  can  be  legitimately  acquired  and  retained  ;  but  He 
judges  of  riches  as  they  oftenest  show  themselves,  taking 
their  rise  in  greedy  injustice  and  unfairness,  displaying 

1  Et's  ttjv  yeveb.v  ttjv  eavrQis :  properly,  in  their  relations  with  their 
fellow-men. 

2"Ora.p  ^kXiVt;  :  "When  you  lack  money."  This  lection  is  found  in 
numerous  Manuscripts  and  ancient  Versions.  The  Vulgate  translates  from 
the  otbei  reading,  ikXlirriTe,  which  is  contained  in  some  of  the  less  impor- 
tant manuscripts. 

3'Ev  tQ  ddtKU)  /xa/A/xuvq.  (Luke  xvi.  11). 


THE    WICKED  RICH  MAN.  117 

their  effects  in  sullen  haughtiness,  hard-heartedness,  and 
intemperate  conduct;  and  because  He  finds  wealth  living 
in  such  fellowship  as  this,  He  brands  it  for  what  it  is. 
Nor  is  He  content  with  lending  all  the  majesty  of  His 
speech  to  this  stern  reprobation ;  He  wishes  to  make  those 
who  love  Him  share  in  His  aversion  for  the  perishable 
dross  of  earth.  The  first  step  taken  by  the  Christians  of 
Jerusalem  was  to  have  one  common  purse,  just  as  they 
had  but  a  single  heart,1  and,  down  to  this  day,  one  of  the 
first  promptings  which  springs  up  in  holy  souls  is  the 
longing  to  devote  themselves  to  Jesus  by  vows  of  perpet- 
ual poverty. 

Yet,  although  the  Lord's  principal  object  was  to  show 
that  great  wealth  is  foreign2  to  the  true  life  of  man,  He  was 
careful  not  to  leave  any  false  impression  upon  the  minds  of 
the  disciples,  —  explaining  to  them  that  they  are  to  imitate 
the  prudence,  and  not  the  dishonesty  of  the  faithless  stew- 
ard, and  that  they  should  prove  by  their  steadfast  integrity 
"  in  little  things,  whether  they  are  worthy  of  great."  He 
concluded  by  repeating  His  customary  maxims  concerning 
the  love  of  terrestrial  possessions  :  — 

"No  man  can  serve  two  masters  at  one  and  the  same 
time.     You  cannot  serve  God  and  Mammon." 

It  was  to  the  disciples  He  addressed  these  words ;  but 
the  avaricious  Pharisees  who  stood  among  the  listeners 
laughed  them  to  scorn.  As  usual,  Jesus  quietly  brushed 
aside  the  insult.3 

"  God  knows  your  hearts,"  He  told  them,  "  for  that  which 
is  great  among  men  is  an  abomination  before  Him." 

And  He  showed  how  this  abomination  was  plain  to  be 
seen  in  the  disdain  which  they  evinced  for  the  Law  given 
to  man,  from  Moses  down  to  John  Baptist,  whereof  the 
reign  of  the  Messiah  was  but  the  fulfilment  and  perfection.4 
Yet  what  else  were  the  Pharisees  doing  but  violating  that 
same  Law  by  tolerating  the  adultery  which  it  prohibited  ? 
Without  mentioning  their  tetrarch  by  name  Jesus  made 
an  evident  allusion  to  his  crime,  and  proceeded  to  scourge 

1  Arts  iv.  32.  2'Ei/  tu>  aWorpiu)  (Luke  xvi.  12). 

3  Luke  xvi.  15.  4  Luke  xvi.  16, 


118       THIRD  YEAR  OF  Till-:  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

the  grovelling  timidity  of  these  doctors  who  hud  sanc- 
tioned the  evil  by  their  silence.1  Then  reverting  to  His 
contempt  of  riches  which  had  first  shocked  them,  He  dwelt 
still  more  forcibly  upon  the  dangers  besetting  earthly 
goods. 

"  There  was  once  a  rich  man,"  He  said,2  "  who  went  all 
robed  in  purple 3  and  linen,  and  every  day  took  his  pleas- 
ure in  great  and  gorgeous  state.  And  there  was  a  beggar 
named  Lazarus,4  who  was  laid  at  his  gate  covered  with 
sores.  He  would  have  been  well  pleased  to  have  cloyed 
his  hunger  with  the  scraps  which  fell  from  the  rich  man's 
table,  and  no  one  gave  him  anything,  but  the  dogs  came 
and  licked  his  sores.5  Now  it  came  time  for  the  beggar  to 
die,  and  he  was  borne  by  the  angels  into  Abraham's  bosom  ; 
and  the  rich  man  died  also,  and  was  buried  in  Hell.  And 
lifting  up  his  eyes,  as  he  was  in  torments,  he  saw  afar  off 
Abraham,  and  Lazarus  in  his  bosom.6 

"  '  Father  Abraham,'  he  cried,  '  have  pity  upon  me,  and 
send  Lazarus,  that  he  may  dip  the  tip  of  his  finger  in  water 
to  cool  my  tongue,  for  I  am  tormented  in  this  flame ! ' 

" '  My  son/  Abraham  answered  him, '  remember  that  thou 
didst  receive  thy  goods  during  thy  life,  while  Lazarus  hath 
had  evil  things  for  his  portion ;  therefore  it  is  that  he  is 
comforted  and  thou  art  in   anguish.     Ay,  and  moreover, 

1  Luke  xvi.  18.  2  Luke  xvi.  19-31. 

3  Purple  is  meant  to  designate  the  mantles  and  rich  coverings  dyed  with 
that  precious  color.  The  linen  refers  to  the  inner  garments.  The  latter 
staff  was  of  very  delicate  texture  and  of  brilliant  whiteness  (Apoc.  xix.  8). 
"  Nee  nlla  sunt  eis  candore  mollitiaque  praeferenda  :  vestes  hide  gratissi- 
mce  "  (Pliny,  Historia  naturalis,  xix.  2).  The  same  author  adds  that 
this  fabric  was  worth  its  weight  in  gold,  and  was  prized  by  women  above 
all  their  treasures.  , 

4  Lazarus  is  the  abridged  form  of  Eleazar :  "W~  /X  "God  is  my  Help." 
"Dens  humiles,  abjectos  et  incognitos  mundo,  ex  nomine  novit  et 
approbat :  superbos  vero  et  honoratos  ignorat  et  despicit"  (Jansenius  of 
Ghent,  Concordia,  cap.  xcvii.). 

5  Here  He  alludes  to  the  troops  of  dogs  which  prowl  about  the  towns 
and  villages  in  the  East  (Ps.  Iviii.  lfj).  "  Lingua  canis,  dura  lingit,  vulnus 
curat"  (Hugo  of  S.  Victor).  Taking  this  interpretation,  the  dogs  are  here 
the  only  comforters  of  Lazarus  ;  it  is  more  probable,  however,  that  by 
licking  his  sores  they  only  intensified  his  pain. 

0  The  "Bosom  of  Abraham"  is,  in  Jewish  parlance,  the  region  where 
the  righteous  repose  while  waiting  the  coming  of  the  Messiah. 


THE    WICKED  RICH  MAN.  119 

there  is  a  great  chaos  forever  fixed  between  you  arid  us ; 
they  that  would  pass  from  hence  to  you,  or  from  thence 
hither,  may  not  so  do.' "  1 

What  could  the  rich  man  do  except  plead  his  ignorance, 
and  so  make  shift  to  cast  the  blame  of  his  wretchedness 
upon  God  ?  Howbeit,  Jesus  would  not  even  allow  him 
this  excuse,  and  thus  continued  the  dialogue  across  the 
impassable  gulf :  — 

"  '  Father,'  said  the  damned,  '  I  adjure  you,  send  Lazarus 
to  my  father's  house,  —  for  I  have  five  brothers.  He  will 
testify  to  them  of  these  things,  for  fear  lest  they  them- 
selves should  come  into  this  place  of  torments.' 

"  But  Abraham  replied :  '  They  have  Moses  and  the 
Prophets ;    let  them  hear  them.' 

"  '  Nay,  Father  Abraham,'  answered  the  wicked  rich  man, 
'  but  if  some  one  from  the  bosom  of  the  dead  go  and  seek 
them  they  will  do  penance.' 

"  '  Nay  !  if  they  hear  not  Moses  and  the  Prophets,  even 
though  One  rise  again  from  the  dead,  they  will  not  believe 
Him.' " 

In  this  manner  Jesus  designated  those  numberless  Jews 
who,  even  after  the  Resurrection,  would  persist  in  their 
obstiuate  incredulity.  But  though  by  their  scoffs  and  jeers 
the  Pharisees  of  Perea  justified  this  prediction,  the  multi- 
tude showed  themselves  much  more  teachable,2  and  to  them 
the  Lord  repeated  the  lessons  He  had  once  given  the  Gali- 

1  "What  a  terrible  difference,  what  a  mournful  lot  to  befall  the  lovers 
of  this  world  !  And  yet,  lift  up  thine  eyes  and  look  again ;  is  it  not 
the  rich  Abraham  who  gathers  poor  Lazarus  to  his  bosom  ?  This  may 
showyou,  0  ye  rich  ones  of  the  earth,  to  what  glory  you  may  aspire  if, 
poor  in  spirit  and  detached  from  worldly  goods,  you  hold  yourself  in  readi- 
ness to  leave  them  at  His  call,  even  as  the  traveller  in  the  desert  makes 
haste  to  emerge  from  the  tent  in  which  he  has  passed  one  short  night " 
(Bossuet,  Oraison  funebre  de  Michel  Le  Tellief). 

2  The  divine  seed-sowing  had  brought  forth  a  harvest  in  this  region, 
for,  when  the  siege  of  Jerusalem  was  almost  upon  them,  the  Christians  of 
the  Holy  City  sought  no  other  asylum  but  Perea ;  fleeing  over  beyond  Jor- 
dan they  found,  to  the  north  of  the  mountains  of  Gal'aad,  in  the  city  of 
Pella,  a  congregation  of  brethren  and  a  new  fatherland.  Doubtless  it  was 
from  the  converted  Jews  living  in  this  country  that  S.  Luke  learned  the 
details  which  he  recounts  here,  and  which  the  other  Evangelists  pass  over 
in  silence. 


120       THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

leans,  —  warning  them  of  scandals,  urging  forgiveness  of 
injuries,  and  telling  them  of  the  all-powerfulness  of  faith.1 
Saint  Luke  but  barely  alludes  to  these  various  instruc- 
tions ;  one  of  them,  however,  he  records  more  at  length. 

"  Which  of  you,"  said  Jesus,2  "  having  a  servant  in  the 
ploughlands,  or  keeping  the  cattle,  will  say  to  him  when  he 
comes  in  from  the  field:  'Go  straightway  and  sit  down  to 
table !'  and  does  not  say,  on  the  contrary,  '  Make  ready  my 
supper;  gird  thyself,  and  serve  me  until  I  have  eaten  and 
drunken,  after  which  thou  shalt  eat  and  drink.'  Is  he 
under  any  obligation  to  this  servant  for  having  done  that 
which  he  was  commanded  to  do  ?  Nay,  I  think  not.  So 
you  also,  when  you  shall  have  done  all  things  which  are 
commanded  you,  say :  '  We  are  useless  servants ;  we  have 
done  that  which  we  ought  to  do.' " 

This  Parable  is  an  inestimable  treasure  which  merits  a 
foremost  place  in  our  memory,  for  it  denotes  that  at  a 
time  when  Jesus  was  exalting  the  poor  of  his  Realm,  when 
He  invited  them  to  His  Table,  bidding  his  Angels  trans- 
form their  death  into  victory,  He,  nevertheless,  took  care 
not  to  flatter  any  man,  of  whatsoever  rank  or  condition  lie 
might  be.  One  ami  all  were  reminded  that  the  Master 
Husbandman  has  given  to  each  a  task  at  the  tillage, — 
some  in  this  near  place,  some  further  afield,  and  on  the 
day  when  the  plough-handle  slips  from  their  weary  grasp, 
and  the  sickle  falls  from  the  listless  fingers,  they  must 
not  pretend  to  any  credit,  beyond  "  having  done  what  they 
ought,"  nor  claim  the  right  to  any  glory  other  than  a  share 
in  the  boundless  mercies  of  the  Lord  of  the  Harvest. 

1  Luke  xvii.  1-6.  -  Luke  xvii.  7-10. 


CHAPTER   X. 

THE  RAISING   OF   LAZARUS. 
John  xi.  1-54. 

Once  more  Jesus  traversed  the  land  of  Perea,  when  a 
messenger  from  Bethany,  a  village  near  Jerusalem,  came 
seeking  Him,  and  at  once  greeted  Him  with  these  words  :  — 

"  Lord,  he  whom  you  love  is  sick." 2 

Lazarus,  the  friend  of  Jesus,  had  been  struck  down  by  a 
grievous  illness,  and  in  all  haste  his  two  sisters  had  de- 
spatched their  courier  to  the  Master,  fully  confident  that 
He  only  needed  to  be  informed  of  their  trouble,  because 
they  felt  sure  they  knew  His  heart.  Mary  especially  had 
many  proofs  of  its  overflowing  tenderness  since  the  day 
when  she  anointed  the  Saviour  with  fragrant  spices  and 
wiped  them  away  with  her  beautiful  hair.2  There  was 
never  a  doubt  but  He  would  hurry  to  His  friend's  bedside, 
and  at  His  mere  approach  the  danger  would  flit  away. 
But  Jesus  was  content  to  listen  to  the  message  and  make 
answer :  — 

"  This  sickness  is  not  unto  death,  but  for  the  glory  of 
God,  in  order  that  the  Son  of  God  may  be  glorified 
thereby." 

Then  He  lingered  two  days  longer  in  this  same  spot; 
not  from  fear,  nor  from  indifference,  for  "  He  loved  Martha 

1  John  xi.  1-6.  . 

2  Luke  vii.  37,  38.  The  critics  who  would  distinguish  between  the  sin- 
ner of  Nairn  and  Mary  Magdalene  are  forced  to  suppose  that  S.  John  here 
refers  beforehand  to  the  anointing  and  the  repast  at  Bethany,  of  which  he 
speaks  in  the  following  chapter.  Is  it  not  more  natural  to  admit  that  the 
Inst  Evangelist  knew  that  S.  Luke's  description  was  familiar  to  the  whole 
Church,  and  hence  alluded  to  it  in  this  way  ? 


122      THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

and  her  sister  Mary  and  Lazarus," 1  but  to  await  the  bid- 
ding from  on  High. 

At  Bethany,  however,  there  was  only  tremulous  and 
eager  expectation;  from  the  brow  of  the  highlands  on 
which  the  village  is  built  more  than  once  the  two  sisters 
with  straining  eyes  scanned  the  wide  outlook,  from  the 
mountains  of  Perea  to  the  footpaths  which  lead  up  to 
Bethany,  longingly  watching  the  road  which  the  Saviour 
must  take.  Alas,  for  their  fruitless  and  forlorn  hopes! 
Lazarus,  their  brother,  died. 

As  is  the  custom  in  hot  climates,  the  body  was  washed, 
wrapped  in  perfumes  and  linen  bands,  then  borne  at  once 
to  the  funeral  grotto,  and  the  wail  of  the  mourners  began. 
The  event  had  collected  together  a  considerable  concourse, 
for,  the  household  of  Lazarus  being  of  distinguished  rank,2 
very  many  Jews  of  note3  had  come  down  with  a  large 
company  from  Jerusalem.  During  all  of  three  days  the 
wonted  lamentations  resounded  through  their  dwelling  and 
round  about  the  tomb.  Martha  and  Mary,  with  feet  bared 
and  their  heads  veiled,  sat  upon  the  ground  and  moaned, 
while  around  them  their  friends  and  neighbors  with  the 
wailers  together  joined  in  the  groans  and  cries  of  mourn- 
ing. At  nightfall  of  the  third  day,  according  to  Jewish 
beliefs,  the  soul  ceased  to  hover  over  the  cold  body.  The 
sepulchre  was  then  visited  for  the  last  time,  the  winding- 

1  Here  S.  John's  language  displays  all  his  admirable  delicacy  of  expres- 
sion. He  has  just  said,  speaking  of  Lazarus,  that  Jesus  loved  him  with  a 
great  love  :  &v  <pi.\els.  Immediately  afterwards,  speaking  of  the  affection 
which  Jesus  entertained  for  Martha,  Mary,  and  their  brother  conjointly, 
he  simply  employs  the  term  riyaira,  which  denotes  a  sentiment  of  charity 
tempered  by  reserve. 

2  All  the  facts  imply  as  much  :  the  concourse  of  Jews,  who  came  from 
Jerusalem  to  take  part  in  the  funeral  obsequies;  the  tomb  of  Lazarus,  hol- 
lowed from  the  rock  according  to  the  fashion  among  the  wealthy  classes  ; 
the  excitement  caused  by  his  death  and  resurrection  ;  the  perfumes  of  great 
price  lavished  by  Mary  (John  xii.  3).  Another  leading  found  in  the 
Alexandrian  Manuscript  seems  even  to  indicate  that  the  two  sisters  kept  a 
numerous  train  :  ras  irepl  Mdprav  icai  Mapi'a/x  ;  fortius  idiom,  which  in  the 
Greek  of  the  decadence  merely  signifies  "  Martha  and  Mary,"  is  not  so 
used  in  the  New  Testament ;  here,  then,  it  must  be  taken  in  its  literal 
sense,  and  thus  denotes  the  women  who  surrounded  Lazarus'  sisters. 

3  Throughout  this  chapter  S.  John  employs  the  words  ol  'lovdcuoi  to 
designate  the  hading  Jews,  often  even  members  of  the  Sanhedrim 


THE  RAISING   Of  LAZARUS.  123 

sheet  drawn  over  the  face  of  the  dead,  and  a  stone 1  for- 
everrnore  sealed  up  this  grave  which  the  Rabbis  called 
"the  Mansion  of  Eternity."2 

Thus  it  seemed  that  for  Lazarus  all  was  finished;3  but 
Jesus,  Who  for  two  days  had  rested  there  without  speaking 
of  Bethany,  of  a  sudden  said  to  His  disciples :  "  Let  us 
return  into  Judea." 

"  Master,"  they  exclaimed,  "  it  is  but  a  little  while  since 
the  Jews  sought  for  you  that  they  might  stone  you,  and 
are  you  going  to  put  yourself  once  more  into  their 
hands  ? " 

The  Lord  essayed  to  calm  their  fears  by  declaring  that 
His  Mission  was  like  the  twelve  hours  of  the  day,4  whose 
duration  no  one  might  shorten  by  human  strength  :  the 
Father  watched  over  Him  with  His  Providence ;  a  divine 
Light  guided  His  footsteps,  so  that  He  might  neither 
stumble  nor  fall,  until  the  hour  appointed  when  the  shades 
of  darkness  would  encompass  Him  about.5  Then  disclos- 
ing the  motive  of  His  departure  He  told  them  :  — 

"  Our  friend  Lazarus  has  fallen  asleep,  but  I  am  going 
to  awaken  him  from  his  slumber." 

"  Lord,"  responded  the  Apostles,  "  if  he  sleeps  he  shall 
be  saved." 

They  forgot  the  slumbering  from  which  the  Master  had 
aroused  the  daughter  of  Jairus,  and  as  usual,  slow  of  com- 
prehension, they  believed  He  was  speaking  of  that  physical 
drowsiness  which  in  certain  maladies  betokens  returning 
health.     Then  Jesus  told  them  plainly:  — 

"  Lazarus  is  dead,  and  I  am  glad  for  your  sakes  that  I 
was  not  there,  in  order  that  you  may  believe.  But  let  us 
go  to  him." 

1  This  stone  was  round  ;  it  sufficed  to  roll  it  in  a  lateral  direction  to 
close  the  face  of  the  tomb. 

2  See,  as  to  Jewish  funerals,  Sepp,  Leben  Jesu,  b.  v.  k.  xcvi. 

3  John  xi.  7,  8. 

4  The  Jews  of  this  period  as  well  as  the  Greeks  had  borrowed  from  the 
Babylonians  the  division  of  the  day  into  twelve  hours  (Herodotus,  ii.  109). 
The  longest  days  in  Palestine  are  of  fourteen  hours  and  twelve  minutes, 
and  the  shortest  of  nine  hours  forty-eight  minutes.  Hence  the  duration 
of  each  of  these  twelve  hours  varied  according  to  the  season. 

5  John  xi.  9-16. 


124       Till  111)   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

These  words  renewed  tlieir  terrors,  —  they  hesitated  co 
follow  Him.  Then  Thomas  spurred  their  courage  with 
those  generous  words  :  — 

"Come,"  he  said  bravely,  "  let  us  go  and  die  with  Him." 

Starting'  out  immediately,1  Jesus  journeyed  across  Jordan 
Valley  and  reached  Bethany  on  the  morrow,  lie  halted  at 
the  outskirts  of  the  village,  for  though  the  company  had 
dispersed  after  the  funeral  repast  of  the  third  day  there 
were  many  friends  still  lingering  beside  the  two  sisters. 
Jesus  knew  that  these  personages  were  powerful  in  Jeru- 
salem, bound  by  many  ties  to  the  Sanhedrin  and  sharing 
its  errors;  therefore  He  desired  not  to  excite  their  atten- 
tion, but  it  was  impossible  to  conceal  His  presence  for 
any  length  of  time.  For,  although  Mary  lingered  in  the 
darkened  dwelling,  overwhelmed  with  sadness,  Martha  had 
resumed  her  active  care  of  household  affairs,2  and  she  was 
speedily  made  aware  of  the  Master's  arrival.  Going  out 
to  meet  Him  she  said  :  — 

"  Lord,  if  you  had  been  here  my  brother  would  not  now 
be  dead.  But  I  know  that  even  now  God  will  giant  you 
whatever  you  will  ask  of  Him." 

"  Your  brother  shall  rise  again,"  Jesus  said  to  her. 

"  I  know,"  she  responded,  "  he  shall  rise  again  in  the 
Besurrection,  in  the  last  day." 

Martha  little  understood  the  meaning  of  the  Saviour's 
promise,  and  only  looked  upon  it  as  another  consoling 
thought,  such  as  her  friends  had  been  repeating  during  all 
of  these  last  three  days. 

The.  Christ  recalled  her  to  a  sense  of  Who  He  was  Who 
was  now  speaking  to  her,  with  those  words  which  the 
Church  still  uses  to  comfort  us  in  our  bereavement.3 

"  I  am  the  Besurrection  and  the  Life.  He  that  believ- 
eth  in  Me,  although  he  be  dead  he  shall  live.     And  he  that 

1  John  xi.  17-27.  Very  likely  the  Saviour  started  on  the  third  day 
alter  the  death  of  Lazarus,  as  the  custom  of  travelling  during  the  night,  in 
order  to  avoid  the  heat,  was  common  in  the  East. 

2  S.  John  depicts  the  two  sisters  just  as  they  are  described  in  S.  Luke  : 
Martha  always  active  and  industrious,  Mary  more  given  to  contemplation. 

s  The  Church,  as  we  know,  recites  this  page  of  the  Gospel  at  Burial 
Masses- 


THE  RAISING   OF  LAZARUS.  125 

liveth  and  believeth  in  Me  shall  not  die  forever.  Be- 
lievest  thou  this  ? " 

"  Yea,  Lord,"  she  said,  "  I  believe  that  Thou  art  the 
Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Living  God,  Who  art  come  into  this 
world." 

It  was  blind,  unquestioning  faith,  rather  than  any  un- 
derstanding of  the  words  of  Jesus,  which  moved  Martha  to 
this  acknowledgment ;  Mary,  the  contemplative  soul,  was 
better  fitted  to  understand  these  exalted  truths.  With  this 
thought  uppermost  in  mind  Martha  sped  homeward  to 
summon  her  sister.1  She  found  her  in  the  great  house, 
still  crouched  upon  the  ground,  her  spirit  absorbed  in  grief. 
Approaching  her  as  quietly  as  possible,  she  whispered :  — 

"  The  Master  is  yonder ;  He  is  asking  for  you." 

In  a  moment  Mary  had  risen  and  was  on  her  way  to 
Jesus.  The  Jews  who  were  with  her  in  the  house  and 
comforted  her,  seeing  her  depart  so  speedily,  followed  her, 
saying :  — 

"  She  is  going  to  weep  at  the  tomb." 

On  leaving  the  village  they  descried  Jesus  with  a  little 
knot  of  disciples  still  waiting  on  the  same  spot  where 
Martha  had  just  met  them.  At  sight  of  Him  Mary  fell 
at  His  feet,  murmuring  the  same  reproachful  words  which 
for  these  last  three  days  the  two  sisters  had  kept  repeating 
to  each  other. 

"  Lord,  if  Thou  hadst  been  here  my  brother  had  not 
died  ! "  2  She  could  add  no  more,  —  her  tears  spoke  and 
she  prayed. 

Around  her  the  Jews  meanwhile  seemed  to  have  forgot- 
ten their  hatred  of  the  Christ ;  like  Mary,  they  too  were 
sobbing.  So  mightily  did  these  tokens  of  love  and  sorrow 
shake  the  soul  of  Jesus  that  His  spirit  was  stirred  and 
troubled  within  Him. 

"  Where  have  you  laid  him  ? "  He  said. 

1  John  xi.  28-35. 

2  In  the  original  text  the  words  of  Mary  are  slightly  different  from 
those  of  her  sister.  Martha  says  simply  :  "  Ovk  clv  airedavev  6  a5e\<p6s 
fiov."  Mary,  by  putting  the  pronoun  fiov  at  the  beginning  of  the  sen- 
tence, gives  a  more  touching  turn  to  her  words  :  "  Ovk  &v  /xov  diridavev  6 
ade\(p6s." 


126      THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  Lord,  come  and  see ! " 

And  Jesus  wept. 

"  See  how  He  loved  him,"  said  the  Jews.1  But  with 
some  there  was  a  feeling  of  bitterness  mingled  with  their 
pity. 

"  And  yet,"  added  the  latter,  "  could  he  not  have  hin- 
dered Lazarus  from  dying,  —  he  who  was  able  to  open  the 
eyes  of  a  man  born  blind  ? "  2 

This  reproach  Jesus  also  overheard,  and  again  shudder- 
ing beneath  the  weight  of  human  sorrows,  He  halted  before 
the  tomb.  According  to  the  fashion  with  wealthy  Jews,  it 
was  in  a  cavern  chiselled  out  of  the  rock,  and  sealed  with 
a  stone. 

"  Take  away  the  stone,"  He  said. 

Martha  was  fain  to  withstand  this  order. 

"  Master,  he  is  already  corrupt ;  it  is  four  days 3  since 
he  died." 

Then  the  Lord  replied :  "  Did  I  not  say  to  you  that  if 
you  believe  you  shall  see  the  glory  of  God  ? " 

The  stone  was  rolled  away  from  the  sepulchre,  and  the 
body  disclosed.  The  two  sisters  with  their  friends  drew 
closer  about  the  Master,  with  tear-dimmed  glances  riveted 
upon  the  gloomy  cave.  Stepping  nearer  and  raising  His 
eyes  toward  Heaven,  Jesus  spoke  :  — 

"  Father,"  He  began,  "  I  give  Thee  Thanks  that  Thou 
hast  heard  Me.  For  Myself,  I  know  that  Thou  hearest 
Me  always,  but  for  the  sake  of  these  people  who  stand 
about  Me  I  have  spoken  thus,  in  order  that  they  may  be- 
lieve that  Thou  hast  sent  Me."  Then  He  cried  with  a  loud 
voice  :  "  Lazarus,  come  forth  ! " 

And  instantly  the  dead  emerged  from  the  grave  with 
feet  and  hands  wrapped  with  the  winding  bands,  with  his 

1  John  xi.  30-44. 

2  The  Jews  of  Jerusalem  had  only  known  by  hearsay  of  the  resurrec- 
tions which  had  taken  place  in  Capharnaum  and  Nairn  :  on  the  contrary, 
the  healing  of  the  man  horn  blind,  performed  underneath  their  eyes,  was 
still  fresh  in  their  memory. 

8  By  this  it  is  not  necessary  to  understand  four  full  days  ;  refer  to  what 
we  have  said  above  in  regard  to  the  sign  of  Jonas  (Vol.  II.,  p.  87, 
note  5). 


THE  RAISING   OF  LAZARUS.  127 

face  shrouded  under  the  linen  kerchiefs,  while  at  the  spec- 
tacle all  stood  speechless  and  white  with  terror. 

"  Loose  his  bands,"  Jesus  said,  "  and  let  him  go." 

The  cere-cloth  fell  from  off  his  features,  the  winding- 
sheets  slipped  from  his  limbs,  and  Lazarus  stood  there  in 
the  sight  of  his  bewildered  friends. 

Saint  John,  who  was  a  witness  of  this  marvel,1  adds  that 
very  many  of  the  Jews  2  who  had  come  hither  to  Martha 
and  Mary,  having  seen  this  which  Jesus  did,  believed  in 
Him.3  But  some  of  the  company  made  haste  to  inform 
the  Sanhedrim  That  assembly  was  struck  with  the  live- 
liest alarm.  The  Passover  was  close  at  hand;  already 
from  every  quarter  of  Judea  the  people  were  starting  out 
on  their  way  up  to  Jerusalem.  What  did  this  Nazarene 
mean  by  coming  up  almost  to  the  very  gates  of  the  Holy 
City  to  work  a  miracle  like  this  ?  Was  He  about  to  de- 
clare Himself  king  and  arouse  the  Jews  against  their 
Eoman  masters  ?  Fears  of  this  sort  reduced  them  to  such 
a  state  of  perplexity  that  they  forthwith  called  an  assembly 
of  the  National  Council. 

Thanks  to  the  members  of  the  Sanhedrin  who  were  after- 
wards converted,  Saint  John  was  made  acquainted  with 
what  took  place  in  this  gathering. 

"  What  are  we  doing  ? "  these  princes  of  Jewry  asked  of 

1  It  has  seemed  astonishing  to  some  students  that  the  three  first  Evan- 
gelists should  not  have  related  the  story  of  Lazarus'  resurrection  :  this 
omission  is  in  entire  conformity  with  the  plan  of  the  synoptic  writers,  who 
pass  over  in  silence  everything  which  Jesus  did  for  Judea,  and  confine 
themselves  to  relating  His  Ministry  in  Galilee  and  over  across  the  Jordan. 
Moreover,  the  miracle  at  Bethany,  which  produced  such  a  lively  impres- 
sion upon  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem,  had  nothing  so  very  extraordinary  about 
it  for  the  Galilean  Apostles,  who  now  for  three  years  had  been  witnesses  of 
similar  prodigies.  They  are  left  out  along  with  all  the  other  striking  ac- 
tions performed  in  Jerusalem,  the  expulsion  of  the  market-men,  the  healing 
of  the  paralytic  at  Bethesda,  and  the  cure  of  the  man  born  blind. 

2  S.  John  does  not  say,  troWoi  r&v  e\66vruv,  "many  of  those  who 
came,"  but  iroWol  .  .  .  oi  eXOuvres,  "  those  who  had  come  in  great  num- 
bers believed  in  Jesus,  and  of  the  latter  some,  rives  54,  went  to  find  the 
Pharisees."  All  through  S.  John's  Gospel,  when  the  particle  oSv  stands  in 
opposition  to  8e,  it  foretokens  some  manifestation  of  the  Glory  of  the 
Christ,  and  5^  some  hostile  intervention.  In  the  present  case,  woWol  ofo 
.  .  .  rives  8i  evidently  are  to  be  taken  in  this  sense. 

8  John  xi.  45,  46. 


128       THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

one  another.1  "This  man  is  working  many  miracles.  It' 
we  let  him  go  on  acting  thus,  all  will  believe  in  him, and  the 
Romans  will  come  and  destroy  our  City  and  our  Nation."2 

Their  annoyance  and  anxiety  were  extreme,  and  the 
various  counsels  contradictory  and  confusing;  at  this  junc- 
ture Joseph  Caiiphas  arose.  As  High-Priest  for  that  year, 
his  dignity,  however  degraded  by  Roman  corruption,  still 
gave  great  weight  to  his  words. 

"You  neither  understand  anything  of  all  this,"  he  began, 
"nor  do  you  consider  that  it  is  far  better  that  one  man 
should  die  for  the  people,  and  that  the  whole  nation  perish 
not." 

Caiphas  disclosed  his  whole  character  in  this  saying, 
wherein  his  pride,  his  contempt  for  justice,  his  unscrupu- 
lous cruelty  are  openly  unmasked.  But  he  was  also 
(though  without  knowing  it)  making  himself  the  Mouth- 
piece of  God,  —  for  the  gift  of  Prophecy  was  in  some  sort 
a  prerogative  of  the  Pontificate;3  and  Jehovah,  Who  for 
long  ages  had  been  wont  to  speak  by  the  Urim  and  the 
Tummiin4  of  the  High-Priest,  once  again  upon  this  day  set 
His  Oracle  on  the  lips  of  a  descendant  of  Aaron.  This  is 
John's  testimony :  — 

J  John  xi.  47-53. 

2'H/.t.u)v  kclI  tov  toitov  cannot  here  refer  to  the  Temple,  which  is  always 
called  the  Holy  Place,  the  Place  of  the  Lord,  and  not  the  place  of  the 
Jews.  This  expression  is  only  used  as  meaning  "  the  city  where  we  dwell, 
our  native  place,  Jerusalem." 

3  Josephus,  Helium  Judaicum,  iii.  8,  3.  Philo,  De  Creatione  prin- 
dpum,  8. 

4  M.  Ancessi,  basing  his  theory  upon  the  meaning  of  the  words  "  Urim  " 
and  "Tummim"  in  the  Egyptian  language,  has  proposed  an  ingenious  ex- 
plication of  this  manner  of  divination  :  "If  we  may  put  any  trust  in  the 
etymology  of  these  words,  in  Urim  we  should  have  the  lights,  and  in 
Tummiin  the  shadows,  which  undoubtedly  flashed  across  the  Face  of  the 
pectoral,  when,  standing  opposite  the  Seven-branched  Candlestick,  its 
bright  rays  glanced  athwart  the  characters  engraved  upon  the  pectoral. 
According  to  the  angle  of  incidence  made  by  this  (duster  of  lights,  some  of 
these  letters  would  then  be  illuminated  in  the  phosphorescent  and  mobile 
colors  from  the  rubies,  the  topaz,  the  amethysts,  and  the  garnets,  while 
others  of  course  remained  in  shadow  or  partially  obscured.  The  High- 
Priests  connected  and  grouped  together  these;  luminous  signs,  in  accordance 
with  a  system  whose  secret  remains  one  of  the  mysteries  of  the  tabernacle. 
Tins  key  alone  could  offer  an  interpretation  of  the  Will  of  Jehovah  " 
(L'FJglise  el  Moisc,  p.  73). 


THE  RAISING   OF  LAZARUS.  129 

"  Cai'phas  said  this,  not  of  himself;  but  being  Pontiff  for 
this  year,  he  prophesied  that  Jesus  should  die  for  His  Na- 
tion, and  not  only  for  His  Nation,  but  furthermore  that  He 
might  gather  together  in  one  God's  children  who  are  scat- 
tered abroad." 

It  would  appear  that  the  High-Priest's  advice  did  not 
excite  the  slightest  opposition.  The  greater  number  of 
Councillors  were  Sadducees ;  doubt  and  scepticism  had 
frozen  their  hearts  and  poisoned  every  upright  and  honest 
tendency  of  their  minds  ;  they  immediately  seized  this  poli- 
tic recommendation  and  resolved  to  adopt  it,  by  compass- 
ing the  death  of  Jesus. 

If  we  are  to  believe  the  traditions,  this  decision  was  ar- 
rived at,  not  in  Jerusalem,  but  upon  a  certain  highland  in 
the  suburbs  which  still  bears  the  name  of  "Evil  Council." 
There  Cai'phas  possessed  a  country-house,  and  his  purpose 
in  assembling  the  Sanhedrin  in  this  retired  spot,  was  to 
preserve  secrecy  in  regard  to  the  sentence  found  against 
the  Nazarene.  But  Jesus  counted  several  friends  in  the 
supreme  council ;  though  Nicodemus  and  Joseph  of  Ari- 
mathea  had  not  the  courage  openly  to  undertake  His  de- 
fence, they  at  least  were  not  implicated  in  the  conspiracy,1 
and  probably  it  was  upon  receiving  their  warning  that  the 
Saviour  decided  to  quit  Jerusalem. 

Accompanied  by  a  chosen  band  of  followers,  He  set  out 
for  the  tract  of  country  which  stretches  between  Bethel 
and  the  Jordan,  and  withdrew  until  well-nigh  within  the 
borders  of  Samaria,  to  a  town  called  Ephrem.2  There  He 
consecrated  the  last  weeks  of  His  life  to  intimate  converse 
with  His  disciples ;  and  the  secret  of  His  retreat  was  not 

1  Luke  xxiii.  51. 

2  John  xi.  54.  Ephrem  seems  to  have  been  quite  an  important  village  : 
KufjLr)  fieyicTT-ri  (Eusebius),  villa  prsegraiidis  (S.  Jerome).  Although  the 
situation  of  this  town  is  doubtful,  it  is  probably  to  be  identified  with  the 
ancient  city  of  Ophrah  (Jos.  xviii.  '23  ;  1  Kings  xiii.  17),  that  is,  must 
be  located  a  little  to  the  enst,  and  at  a  short  distance  from  Bethel.  Ac- 
cording to  Robinson,  Et-Taiyibeh  marks  its  site  {Biblical  Researches,  i. 
pp.  444-447).  This  modern  village  lies  in  a  wild  region  on  the  top  of 
a  hill,  whence  the  wide  prospect  embraces  Perea,  Jordan  Valley,  and 
the  Dead  Sea.  It  is  about  seven  hours'  journey  from  Jerusalem,  a  dis- 
tance which  is  quite  in  accordance  with  what  S.  Jerome  gives  in  his 
Onomasticon. 

VOL.    II.  — 9 


L30      THIRD    YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

betrayed,  for  when,  a  little  later,  the  Sanhedrin  synod  or- 
dained that  anyone  who  knew  where  He  was  should  deliver 
Iliia  up  to  them,  no  one  disclosed  His  habitation.1  We  do 
not  know  why  the  princes  of  Jewry  precipitated  their  first 
resolution,  and  decided  to  lay  hands  upon  the  Christ  at 
once.  Did  they  wish  to  have  Him  safely  chained  in  their 
dungeons,  so  that  they  might  examine  His  case  at  leisure, 
question  Him  and  confront  Him  with  their  witnesses  ? 
Did  they  meditate  making  away  with  Him  secretly  ?  "What- 
ever design  they  may  have  had  in  mind,  it  was  certainly 
one  intended  to  effect  the  destruction  of  the  Saviour,  and 
very  soon  they  would  find  nothing  in  the  way  of  their  de- 
sires,—  for  Jesus  was  about  to  emerge  from  His  last  place 
of  refuge  and  of  His  own  will  deliver  Himself  into  their 
hands. 

1  John  xi.  56. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

JESUS'  LAST  JOURNEY  TO  JERUSALEM. 


I.  The  Ten  Lepers.  —  The  Coming  of  the  Son  of 
Man.  —  The  Judge  and  the  Widow.  —  The  Phar- 
isee and  the  Publican. 

Luke  xvii.  11-37;  xviii.  1-14  ;  Matt.  xix.  1-2  ;  Mark  x.  1. 

However  much  of  ungratefulness  the  land  of  Israel  had 
shown  Him,  Jesus  dearly  loved  His  native  country,  as  the 
mother  loves  the  child  of  her  sorrows,  and  He  would  not 
die  without  revisiting  the  places  whither  He  had  once  car- 
ried the  Good  News  of  salvation.  So  a  few  weeks  before 
the  Paschal-tide,  He  left  Ephrem,  wending  His  way  north- 
ward, travelled  across  Samaria  and  Galilee,1  and  when  upon 
their  frontiers  wrought  one  of  His  last  miracles. 

On  the  outskirts  of  a  little  hamlet,2  shrill  cries  reached 
His  ears  :  they  came  from  a  group  of  ten  lepers  who  lived 

1  Modern  geographers,  by  locating  the  village  of  Ephrem  at  Et-Taiyibeh, 
on  the  frontier  of  Samaria,  have  happily  elucidated  that  difficult  passage  in 
S.  Luke  :  "  It  came  to  }>ass,  as  they  were  on  the  way  to  Jerusalem,  that 
He  was  passing  through  the  midst  of  Samaria  and  Galilee  "  (Luke  xvii.  11). 
Wieseler  ( Chronologischc  Synapse,  p.  322)  reasonably  concludes  from  this, 
that  the  Lord  did  not  go  up  immediately  toward  the  Holy  City,  but  as- 
cended as  far  as  Galilee,  and  thence,  according  to  the  testimony  of  S.  Mat- 
thew (xix.  1),  and  S.  Mark  (x.  1),  He  passed  over  Jordan  into  the  region 
which  these  two  Evangelists  describe  quite  exactly  by  these  words  :  to. 
opia  ttjs  'Iov8aias,  "the  frontiers  of  Judea  ;"  in  fact,  at  that  time,  this 
province  comprised  a  certain  part  of  the  lands  lying  to  the  east  of  the 
Jordan.  The  Lord  did  not  penetrate  into  the  interior  of  Perea,  but  kept 
along  the  river  banks  :  ovk  iwl  ra  [i4<xa,  d\\'  olovel  rd  frtcpa  (Origen). 

2  Luke  xvii.  12-19. 


132      THIRD  YE  All  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

together  near  tins  spot.  They  durst  not  approach  closer, 
for  any  contact  with  them,  even  their  passing  breath,  was 
a  contamination,  yet  so  soon  as  they  recognized  the  Saviour, 
they  lifted  up  their  voice  crying  all  together:  — 

"  Jesus  !  Master  !  have  pity  upon  us  !" 

The  Lord  granted  their  hearts'  desire:  — 

"  Go,"  said  He,  "  show  yourselves  to  the  priests."  1 

They  obeyed  instantly,  and  even  as  they  were  on  their 
way  to  those  who  could  rightfully  certify  to  their  cure, 
they  felt  a  purer  life-blood  surging  up  within  their  veins, 
the  hideous  pallor  was  fast  yielding  to  the  swift  pulse  of 
health  ;  their  malady  had  disappeared  ! 

But  what  was  it  happened  by  the  roadside,  and  what 
was  the  reason  they  showed  such  coldness  of  heart  ?  was  it 
their  own  evil  natures  or  some  fear  of  the  Jews,  or  was  it 
the  prompting  of  some  foes  of  Jesus,  which  held  them  back 
from  Him  ?  We  do  not  know  ;  all  that  the  Gospel  tells 
us  is  that  of  the  ten  lepers  only  one  retraced  his  steps, 
with  a  loud  voice  glorifying  God  the  while,  and  that  this 
one  was  a  Samaritan.  A  denizen  of  that  border-land  of 
Judea,  He  had  found  no  difficulty  in  gaining  admittance 
among  these  lepers  of  Israel;  the  wretched  disease  which 
was  the  common  fate  of  such-  outcasts  always  levelled  any 
barriers  of  rank  between  fellow-sufferers ;  but  once  the 
affliction  was  lifted  away  the  barriers  arose  of  themselves. 
So  the  nine  Jews  had  left  the  Samaritan  to  throw  himself 
alone  at  the  feet  of  Jesus.  Well  accustomed  as  the  Saviour 
was  to  all  manner  of  ingratitude,  this  last  token  of  heart- 
lessness  dismayed  Him. 

"  Were  not  the  ten  cleansed,"  He  said  ;  "  where  then  are 
the  nine  others  ?  There  was  none  found  who  returned  to 
give  glory  to  God,  save  this  stranger!" 

Only  in  this  last-named  soul  could  Jesus  complete  the 

1  "  Wlientlie  ten  lepers,  one  of  whom  was  a  Samaritan,  presented  them- 
selves before  Jesus,  in  the  hope  of  being  cleansed,  the  Lord  despatched  all 
alike,  the  Samaritans  as  well  as  the  others,  to  the  Priests,  the  successors 
of  Aaron,  as  to  the  source  of  religion  and  the  sacraments,  'matricem  re- 
ligionis  et  fontem  salutis,'  to  quote  the  words  of  Tertullian  [Adversus 
\farcionem,  iv.  35)."  (Bossuet,  lre  Instruction  pastorale  sur  Us  promesses 
de  Vtiglisc,  17.) 


THE   TEN  LEPERS.  133 

work  of  grace ;  already  He  had  touched  the  Samaritan's 
heart.     He  now  made  him  one  of  His  disciples. 

"  Arise,"  He  said  to  him,  "  and  go  your  way  :  your  faith 
has  saved  you." 

The  healing  of  the  lepers  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
Galilean  Pharisees,1  which  for  some  months  had  been  di- 
verted from  the  Christ.  The  youthful  Teacher  reappeared 
before  them  with  all  His  wonted  marks  of  power,  mighty 
in  deed  and  in  word,  as  of  old,  continuing  always  to  pub- 
lish the  approach  of  God's  Kingdom,  although  without  any 
token  of  preparations  for  the  establishment  of  a  terrestrial 
empire,  —  with  no  signs  of  royal  pomp  or  splendid  vic- 
tories; meek,  gentle,  terrible  only  to  the  devils,  He  every- 
where yielded  to  the  violence  of  man,  was  hunted  from 
town  to  town,  from  one  land  to  another.  What  then  was 
there  to  hope  from  a  Messiah  who  was  like  to  be  destroyed 
after  this  fashion,  along  with  His  fruitless  promises  ?  Were 
the  preparations  for  His  much-talked-of  Coming  to  be 
never-ending  ?  Wearied  with  this  prolonged  course  of 
deception,  as  they  construed  it,  the  Pharisees  approached 
Him. 

"  When,"  they  inquired  contemptuously,  "  will  the  'King- 
dom of  God  '  come  ?  " 

The  Lord  replied  that  it  was  needless  for  them  to  stand 
at  gaze,  waiting  for  some  new  marvel  to  burst  upon  their 
ecstatic  vision  and  overcome  them  "  by  outward  shows." 2 
His  Eealm  was  not  like  those  of  earth,  which  are  estab- 
lished at  the  expense  of  wars  and  wondrous  feats  of 
strength.  No  glittering  court  is  arrayed  around  the  new 
King,  no  wondering  throngs,  attracted  by  His  gorgeous 
state,  gather  about  Him  shouting  "  Lo ;  here  He  is !  Yon- 
der He  stands  ! "  3 

"The  Kingdom  of  God,"  Jesus  said,  "is  within  you,"  — 
plainly  visible  to  the  pure  of  heart,  unseen  by  the  eyes  of 

1  The  Pharisees  of  Galilee  never  conceived  any  such  violent  hatred  for 
Jesus  as  did  those  of  Judea.  They  abandoned  him,  when  misled  by  the 
Sanhedrin's  emissaries,  hut  without  trying  to  injure  Him. 

2  Mera  TrapaTrjpria-eojs  (Luke  xvii.  20).  "  Ita  ut  oculis  observari  pos- 
sit"(Wahl,  CI  avis  Novi  Testament  i). 

8  Luke  xvii.  21. 


134      THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY    Ob  JESUS. 

fleshj  a  heavenly  empire,  which,  for  nineteen  centuries, 
has  never  yet  appeared  outside  the  holy  sanctuary  of  the 
soul,  and  until  to-day  is  still  denied  by  the  very  men  who 
daily  see  millions  of  subjects  bowing  beneath  the  invisible 
sceptre  of  the  Christ!1 

So  for  the  Pharisees,  who  were  strangers  to  the  King- 
dom of  God,  this  response  was  sufficient ;  but  it  was  not 
enough  for  the  disciples,  who  were  its  true  children.  The 
Master  warned  them  that  they  were  to  be  persecuted  and, 
as  it  would  seem,  abandoned  by  God ;  "  that  they  should 
greatly  desire  to  behold  again  one  of  those  days "  which 
they  had  spent  in  blessed  companionship  with  the  Son  of 
Man,  but  that  they  should  see  the  like  never  again.2  Then 
would  it  behove  them  to  remain  steadfast  and  turn  a  deaf 
ear  to  the  blandishments  of  deceivers,  who  would  cry,  "  Lo, 
here  He  is  !  See  !  He  is  there  ! "  3  Vain  and  empty  clamor  ! 
A  bootless  quest !  Jesus  shall  no  more  return,  until  time 
is  at  an  end,  and  then  with  such  flashing  and  crashing  of 
thunderbolts  that  the  deaf  and  the  blind  shall  wot  thereof.4 
This  last  coming  shall  be  "  swift  as  the  lightning,"  wild  and 
furious  "  as  those  great  floods  which  swallowed  up  Noe's 
fellow-countrymen,"  terrible  "  as  the  showers  of  fire,  in 
which  Sodom  was  engulfed." 5  Woe  to  the  man  who,  in 
that  dread  day,  finds  himself  unable  to  disentangle  his 
heart  from  the  burning  wreck  of  the  world,  and  refuses  to 
turn  his  back  upon  it,  "  like  Lot's  wife  "  longing  to  cast  one 

1  "  It  would  not  have  been  right  had  He  appeared  after  a  manner  mani- 
festly divine  and  absolutely  capable  of  convincing  all  men;  hut  neither 
would  it  have  been  right  had  He  come  after  a  manner  so  hidden  that  He 
could  not  be  recognized  by  those  who  sincerely  sought  Him.  Unto  all 
such  He  wished  to  make  Himself  perfectly  known,  and  so,  desiring  to  ap- 
pear openly  to  those  who  sought  Him  with  all  their  hearts,  and  to  remain 
hidden  from  those  who  fled  from  Him  with  all  their  hearts,  He  so  far 
tempers  this  knowledge  of  Himself,  in  order  to  give  visible  tokens  of  Him- 
self to  those  who  seek  Him,  and  only  obsenre  signs  to  those  who  seek  Him 
not.  There  was  enough  of  light  for  such  as  only  desired  to  see  more 
clearly,  and  enough  obscurity  for  such  as  were  of  the  contrary  disposition  " 
(Pascal,  Pens€es,  art.  xx.). 

2  Luke  xvii.  22. 

3  Luke  xvii.  23. 

4  Luke  xvii.  24. 

8  Luke  xvii.  26-29. 


THE   COMING   OF  THh   SON  OF  MAN.  lo5 

more  glance  on  the  habitations  of  evil !  That  shall  be  a 
season  of  sickening  surprises,  heartrending  separations,  the 
night  of  Eternity,  whenas  "  there  shall  be  two  together  in 
the  same  bed,  the  one  shall  be  taken,  the  other  left." 1 

Every  line  in  this  Prophecy  applied  in  like  manner  to 
the  judgment  which  each  man  must  undergo,  to  the  ap- 
proaching destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  to  the  last  High 
Court  which  shall  doom  or  deliver  the  world.  At  these 
three  awful  epochs  Jesus  declared  that  God's  justice  would 
be  equally  sudden  and  unlooked  for.  But  this  lofty  plane 
of  thought  was  far  above  the  comprehension  of  His  Apos- 
tles ;  with  their  minds  filled  with  the  imagery  of  Joel,2  they 
believed  they  were  already  nigh  upon  the  day  foretold  by 
the  Prophet :  "  Day  of  clouds  and  tempests  .  .  .  when  the 
sun  shall  change  into  thick  darkness,  the  moon  to  blood, 
the  earth  shall  be  covered  with  flame  and  whirlwinds  of 
smoke."  Already  their  eyes  were  looking  for  the  Valley 
of  Josaphat,  "  the  Valley  of  Slaughter,  whither,  with  a  roar- 
ing out  of  Sion,  Jehovah  shall  gather  all  the  peoples  of  the 
earth."3 

"  Where,  Lord  ? "  they  cried.4 

"  Where  the  carcass  is,  there  will  the  eagles  be  gathered 
together,"  was  Jesus'  answer. 

Thus  the  Divine  Justice  knows  neither  time  nor  place, 
but  strikes  clown  sin  wheresoever  it  befouls  the  earth.  In 
that  hour,  when  the  measure  of  the  world's  wickedness 
shall  be  filled  to  overflowing  and  naught  but  the  senseless 
corse  of  iniquity  remains,  then  the  avenging  eagles  of  Di- 
vine Justice  shall  sweep  down  upon  their  prey.  They 
shall  be  gathered  together,5  in  the  words  of  the  Seer  of 
Patmos,6  "  unto  the  great  Supper  of  God,  that  they  may  eat 
the  flesh  of  kings,  the  flesh  of  chieftains  in  battle,  the 

1  Luke  xvii.  32-35.  2  Joel  ii.  2,  30,  31. 

8  Joel  iii.  14-16,  2.  4  Luke  xvii.  36,  37. 

5  In  northern  regions  we  rarely  see  eagles  and  vultures  assembling  like 
this,  in  immense  flocks,  but  there  is  no  commoner  sight  in  Judea.  While 
crossing  the  plain  of  Esdralon,  we  have  seen  a  cloud  of  these  birds  swoop 
down  upon  the  heights,  where  Jesreel  once  stood,  to  devour  some  animals 
which  had  died  of  the  pest,  and  been  abandoned  in  this  lonely  spot. 

6  Apoc.  xix.  17,  18,  21. 


136      THIRD  YE  Ml  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

flesh  of  mighty  men,  the  flesh  of  horses  and  their  riders, 
the  flesh  of  all  men,  free  men  and  slaves,  the  little  and 
the  great  .  .  .  and  all  the  birds  were  gorged  with  their 
flesh."  * 

This  Vision  of  Judgment  froze  the  disciples'  hearts  with 
fear.  To  reassure  them  the  Master  forewarned  them  that 
they  need  not  be  overtaken  by  surprise,  if  they  would  but 
look  steadfastly  Heavenwards ;  and  so,  by  means  of  two 
Parables,  He  taught  them  more  in  regard  to  Prayer. 

The  first  showed  them  what  is  the  power  of  persever- 
ance,2 and  that  they  must  "  pray  always  without  ever  being 
wearied." 

An  unrighteous  and  prevaricating  judge  for  a  long  time 
refuses  to  hear  the  case  of  a  poor  widow ;  at  last  he  con- 
sents, worn  out  by  her  ceaseless  complaints.3 

"  Even  though  I  have  no  fear  of  God,"  he  says,  "  and 
care  nothing  for  man,  yet  because  this  widow  is  burden- 
some to  me,  I  will  grant  her  justice,  lest  she  finally  over- 
power me."  4 

1  This  mysterious  saying:  "Where  the  body  shall  be,  there  will  the 
eagles  flock  together,"  has  been  variously  interpreted.  Some  regard  the 
carcass  as  signifying  Jerusalem  ;  the  eagles  as  symbolizing  the  Roman 
legions  which  were  to  lay  it  waste.  For  others  the  body  is  Jesus  in  the 
Eucharist,  and  the  eagles  those  holy  souls  which  are  nourished  thereby. 
"Blessed,"  cries  Bossuet,  "are  those  who  shall  behold  this  Body  which 

death  hath  consecrated  unto  our  salvation  !  Blessed  are  the  eagles  which 
fly  unto  Him  and  are  fulfilled  of  Him.  May  we  be  such  eagles,  .  .  .  mak- 
ing our  prey  of  that  Body  which  death  hath  already  made  ours.  In  the 
Holy  Eucharist  we  have  that  same  Body,  long  since  dead  for  our  sake,  now 
living,  though  still  with  the  signs  of  death  :  come,  let  us  partake  thereof, 
receiving  its  whole  substance,  drawing  all  sweetness  therefrom  "  (Medita- 
tions, derniere  semaine,  lxxxiv. ).  However  sublime  this  interpretation 
may  seem,  we  shrink  from  believing  that  Jesus  could  compare  Himself  to 
a  tainted  carcass,  and  the  passage  of  the  Apocalypse  quoted  in  the  text 
appears  to  us  to  give  the  true  meaning  of  the  Master's  words. 

2  Luke  xviii.  1-8. 

8  This  importunity  which  makes  most  for  the  ultimate  success  of  prayer, 
is  found  again  in  the  saying  concerning  the  friend  rapping  at  his  neighbor's 
door  (Luke  xi.  5)  :  "  Knock  on,  fail  not  to  knock  even  unto  making  your- 
self burdensome,  were  that  possible.  There  is  a  manner  of  compelling 
God's  favor,  thereby  wresting  from  Him  His  grace  :  and  this  way  is  to  ask 
without  ceasing"  (Bossuet,  Meditations  sur  VEvangiU:  Sermon  sur  la 
MONTAGNE,  xle  jour.). 

4  'T7ra>7ric£ft7(from  vwuttiov,  that  part  of  the  face  which  is  below  the  eyes), 
properly  means  to  strike  one  in  the  face,  while  in  a  figurative  sense  it 


THE  PHARISEE  AND   THE  PUBLICAN.  137 

"  You  hear,"  added  the  Lord, "  what  the  unrighteous  judge 
says.  And  will  not  God  grant  justice  to  His  elect,  who 
cry  to  Him  night  and  day,  and  will  He  impose  a  long  delay 
upon  them?1  No,  I  say  unto  you,  He  will  graut  them 
justice  right  speedily." 

The  theme  of  the  second  Parable  was  the  humility  with 
which  it  befits  us  to  pray.2  The  Master  could  not  note  the 
ignorance  and  the  carnal  cravings  of  His  disciples  without 
sorrowing  over  them. 

"  Think  you,"  He  exclaimed,  "  that  the  Son  of  Man  when 
He  returns,  shall  still  find  faith  on  earth  ? " 

Indeed,  at  this  very  time  when  He  was  fashioning  ..their 
hearts  for  prayer,  there  was  nothing  but  rivalry  and  dissen- 
sion in  the  souls  of  His  followers :  each  one  boasting  of 
his  own  merits,  proud  of  his  own  outward  semblance  of 
piety ;  while  in  their  presumption  some  went  so  far  as 
even  to  despise  their  fellow-men.  To  these  self-conceited 
spirits,  Jesus  told  a  story  of  two  men  who  went  up  to  the 
Temple  to  pray,  one  a  Pharisee,  the  other  a  publican.  In 
the  presence  of  the  Lord,  the  Pharisee  displays  all  the 
arrogance  of  his  sect ;  with  his  head  thrown  back  proudly, 
his  countenance  all  complacent  and  self-satisfied,3  he  stands 
there,  not  so  much  to  pray  as  to  sing  his  own  praises :  — 

"  My  God,"  he  says,  "  I  give  Thee  thanks  for  that  I  am 
not  like  unto  the  rest  of  men,  who  are  violent,  unjust,  un- 

means  to  mortify  one  ;  analogous  to  the  Latin  "obtundere."  Meyer  un- 
derstands it  literally,  of  an  irritated  woman,  who  in  the  end  actually  strikes 
her  judge. 

1  Kai  /j.aKpodv/jLe?  67]-'  avrois.  Slow  as  He  may  seem  in  avenging  His 
elect,  God  does  not  forget  them,  and  fails  not  to  come  to  their  aid  :  "  Quod 
tibi  videtur  longum,  breve  est  :  omnia  ista  cito  tvanseunt.  Quid  est  longa 
vita  hominis  ad  seternitatem  Dei  ?  Vis  esse  longanimis  ?  Vide  seternitatem 
Dei  .  .  .  Quid  tu  tsedium  patens  et  facis  ?  iEternus  est,  tardat :  junge 
cor  tuum  reternitati  Dei  et  cum  illo  setemus  eris  "  (S.  Augustine,  in  Psalm 
xci.  6). 

2  Luke  xviii.  9-14. 

3  According  to  Jewish  usage,  the  Pharisee  and  the  publican  both  prayed 
standing ;  yet  while  the  former's  attitude  is  studied  and  affected,  that  of 
the  latter  is  humble  and  devoid  of  pretension  :  "A  longe  dicitur  stetisse, 
et  oeulis  in  terrain  flexis,  quod  curvaturam  ejus  significat,  ut  ex  opositione 
intelligamus  significatum  istum  (Pharisamm)  stetisse  juxta  altare,  et  ste- 
tisse non  solum  eorpore  erecto,  sed  et  animo  "  (Janseuius  of  Ghent,  Concor- 
dia Evangelica,  cap.  xcix.). 


138      THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

clean  ;  as  also  is  yonder  publican.     I  fast  twice  a  week;  I 
pay  tithes  upon  all  that  1  possess."1 

Afar  off  from  the  altar,  before  which  the  Pharisee  had 
planted  himself,  the  publican  stood,  not  daring  so  much  as 
to  lift  up  his  eyes  unto  Heaven ;  with  head  bowed  down 
he  smites  his  breast,  repeating  in  low  voice:  — 
"  O  God  !  have  pity  upon  me  who  am  a  sinner ! " 
And  Jesus  added :  "  1  tell  you  this  man  went  down  to 
his  house  justified,  and  not  the  other,  for  he  who  exalts 
himself  shall  be  humbled,  and  he  who  humbles  himself 
shall  be  exalted." 

II.    Divorce.  —  Jesus  with  the  Children.  —  The  Rich 
Young  Max.  —  The  Woekmen  in  the  Vineyard. 

Markx.  2-31  ;  Matt.  xix.  3-30;  xx.  1-16;  Luke  xviii.  15-30. 

This  lesson  was  the  last  which  Galilee  was  to  hear  from 
the  Great  Teacher.  Bidding  His  native  land  a  last  fare- 
well, Jesus  crossed  Jordan  and  descended  the  eastern  bank 
of  the  stream.  Soon  Pharisees  of  Perea  crowded  around 
Him  again ; 2  they  no  longer  came  to  listen,  but  to  tempt 
the  Master.3 

"  Is  it  allowable,"  they  began,  "  to  leave  the  wife  for  any 
reason,  whatever  it  may  be  ?"4 

A  weighty  question  this,  and  one  just  now  engrossing 
the  attention  of  Jewish  doctors,  as  it  turned  upon  that 

1  Every  Israelite  must  pay  —  so  reads  the  Law  —  a  tithe  upon  his  herds 
and  his  harvests  (Num.  xviii.  21).  The  Pharisees  pushed  their  ostenta- 
tious piety  so  far  as  to  pay  tithes  on  the  meanest  herbs  (see  above,  vol.  ii. 
p.  90). 

2  Though  the  discourses  which  precede  this  ought,  according  to  all  ap- 
pearances, to  be  referred.to  the  time  indicated  by  S.  Luke,  —  that  is  when 
Jesus  was' crossing  Samaria  and  Galilee  (Luke  xvii.  11),  yet  this  is  not 
the  case  with  the  facts  which  follow  ;  for  SS.  Matthew  and  Mark  relate 
that  Jesus  had  passed  over  the  Jordan  when  the  Pharisees  cross-questioned 
Him  on  the  subject  of  divorce  (Matt.  xix.  1  ;  Mark  x.  1). 

3  Matt.  xix.  3-6. 

4  Tlie  Pharisees  are  citing  the  very  language  of  the  interpretation  which 
Hillcl  gave  to  that  difficult  passage  of  Deuteronomy:  13T  vj  by:  /wrd 
iraaaf  curiae  (Sec  Buxtorf,  Synagoga  Judaica,  29). 


DIVORCE.  139 

obscure  text  in  Deuteronomy  : 1  "  When  the  man  who  has 
married  a  wife,  conceives  a  loathing  of  the  woman,  because 
he  has  found  some  stain  upon  her,  he  shall  give  her  a  writ- 
ing of  divorce,  and  having  put  it  within  the  woman's  hands, 
he  shall  send  her  out  of  his  house." 

What  were  they  to  understand  by  that  word  stain  ? 
Did  any  corporal  infirmity,  or  the  least  lightness  of  con- 
duct2 deserve  this  epithet?  In  a  word,  was  any  slight 
pretext  sufficient  to  break  all  conjugal  ties  ?  Hillel  and 
his  school  championed  this  opinion.  Of  rigider  views  the 
disciples  of  Shammai  only  conceded  that  divorce  was  law- 
ful in  cases  showing  scandalous  disorders.  But  their  au- 
stere principles  were  little  relished  by  the  many ;  great 
men  of  the  people,  Levites,  Doctors  of  the  Law,  and  gen- 
erally speaking,  all  private  individuals  treated  the  marriage- 
bond  with  a  liberty  which  was  not  far  from  license ;  divorce 
had  simply  replaced  polygamy,  and  though  the  Israelite  no 
longer  maintained  a  number  of  wives  under  the  same  roof, 
he  managed  to  pass  from  one  to  another,  according  to  the 
promptings  of  his  fancy.  Doubtless  Judea  never  knew  the 
excesses  of  the  Pagan  world ;  here  the  women  did  not,  as 
in  Borne,  reckon  the  years  of  their  life  by  the  number  of 
their  husbands,3  but,  whatever  restraint  the  laws  of  Moses 
still  imposed  upon  them,  they  had  become  powerless  to 
check  this  increasing  profligacy  in  the  conduct  of  life. 

So,  then,  for  Jesus  to  take  any  part  in  this  controversy 
by  answering  the  Pharisees'  question  would  be  to  strike 
full  at  the  worst  passions  of  those  about  Him  ;  at  the  same 
time  it  would  be  a  blow  direct  at  the  tetrarch  whose  terri- 
tory they  were  crossing,  thus  branding  his  union  as  incest- 
uous adultery.  For  just  such  daring  frankness  as  this  John 
Baptist  had  forfeited  his  head.  But  no  such  fears  could 
gain  access  to  the  soul  of  Jesus ;  alike  indifferent  to  the 
hatred  of  the  populace  and  to  Herod's  anger,  His  only  care 
was  to  uplift  their  hearts  to  thoughts  of  less  carnal  things. 

1  Deut,  xxiv.  1. 

2  If  a  woman  went  out  into  the  street  with  uncovered  head,  or  chatted 
with  young  men,  this  was  ample  cause,  in  the  judgment  of  certain  Eabbis, 
for  the  husband  to  seek  a  divorce  from  her  (Kctoubot,  vii.  6). 

8  Seneca,  Be  Bcncficiis,  iii.  16. 


140       THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

And  therefore  He  disdained  to  pronounce  between  Hillel 
and  Shammai,  content  to  remind  them  that  the  union 
of  man  and  wife  must  remain  an  eternal  bond  between 
them.  God  Himself,  on  the  first  day  of  the  world,  had 
established  this  order,  commanding  the  man  to  leave  his 
father  and  his  mother1  and  give  himself  altogether  to  her, 
thereafter  being  but  one  with  his  espoused.  It  was  in 
token  of  this  fruitful  unity  that  He  had  created  male  and 
female,  and  taken  Eve  from  the  side  of  sleeping  Adam. 

"  Even  so,"  the  Lord  concluded,  "  they  are  no  more 
twain,2  but  the  one  same  flesh.  Then  let  not  man  put 
asunder  what  God  hath  joined  together." 

The  Pharisees  comprehended  that  Jesus  had  avoided 
their  pitfall  by  uttering  these  words,  but  they  were  anx- 
ious to  involve  Him  in  direct  contradiction  with  the 
Law. 

"But  why,  then,"  they  objected,3  "did  Moses  command 
us  to  give  the  woman  a  Bill  of  Divorce,  and  so  leave 
her  ? " 

They  indeed  had  transformed  the  toleration  of  an  act 
into  a  positive  precept.  To  lay  bare  their  trickery,  Jesus 
needed  only  to  explain  what  was  the  true  spirit  animating 
the  Law. 

"  It  was  because  of  the  hardness  of  your  hearts,"  He  re- 
plied calmly,  "that  Moses  permitted  you  to  leave  your 
wives,  but  at  the  beginning  it  was  not  thus."  Whereupon 
He  added  those  words  which  have  dowered  the  marriage 
state  with  its  final  perfection  :  "  I  say  unto  you,  every  man 
that  leaves  his  wife,  except  it  be  for  adultery,  and  marries 
another,  commits  adultery;  and  he  who  marries  the  wile 
that  is  thus  put  away  commits  adultery."  4 

1  Jesus  attributes  to  Jehovah  the  words  pronounced  by  Adam,  because 
the  latter  was  here  the  organ  of  the  Lord  :  "  Deus  utique  per  hominem 
dixit  quod  homo  prophetando  prredixit "  (S.  Augustine,  Dc  Nuptiis, 
ii.  4). 

2  Gen.  iii.  24.  The  words  ol  Svoj  are  found  in  the  Septuagint,  the  Vul- 
gate, and  the  Samaritan  Pentateuch,  but  not  in  the  Hebrew. 

8  Matt.  xix.  7-9  ;  Mark  x.  4-9. 

4  Here  Jesus  repeats  what  He  had  said  upon  the  Mount  of  Beatitudes  : 
on  both  these  occasions,  while  permitting  His  disciples  to  leave  the  adulter- 
ous wife,  He  expressly  declares  that  this  separation  docs  not  sever  the 


DIVORCE.  141 

His  enemies  realized  that  the  Christ  had  vanquished 
them ;  they  durst  not  so  much  as  contend  that  this  teach- 
ing was  an  open  affront  to  Herod,  as  well  as  a  drastic  meas- 
ure of  reform  for  all  Israel.  Discomfited  and  abashed,  they 
were  obliged  to  let  Him  withdraw  into  His  dwelling-place 
unmolested.1 

Hardly  were  they  within  doors  when  the  disciples  began 
to  question  in  their  turn. 

"If  the  case  stands  thus  between  husband  and  wife," 
they  said,  "  it  were  better  by  far  not  to  marry."  2 

No  more  telling  testimony  could  be  found  as  to  the 
depth  of  degradation  to  which  public  morals  had  de- 
scended than  these  words.  So,  even  the  Apostles  looked 
upon  the  notion  of  marital  fidelity  as  an  intolerable  idea ; 
the  sadness  and  the  reproach  of  a  single  life  seemed  slight 
and  insignificant  compared  to  the  irksomeness  of  such  an 
unbearable  yoke. 

Far  from  abating  His  law  by  one  whit,  the  Master  re- 
sponded that  it  was  only  the  first  step  in  the  way  of 
Chastity  now  set  before  the  feet  of  His  faithful  followers ; 
for  very  soon  a  heavenly  grace  would  impel  His  chosen 
souls  to  loftier  heights,  and  so  bear  them  beyond  the  reach 
of  earthly  loves  and  desires.  To  make  known  this  mystery 
of  the  stainless  soul  to  these  rough  fishermen  of  Galilee 
would  seem  a  hopeless  task ;  but  notwithstanding,  Jesus 
essayed  to  raise  their  minds  to  that  supreme  standpoint. 

In  uttering  their  cry  of  discouragement,  they  had  unwit- 
tingly spoken  truth :  — 

"It  were  better  not  to  marry  ! " 

"  All  men,"  added  the  Lord,  "  comprehend  not  this  saying, 
but  only  those  to  whom  it  is  given." 

And  to  mark  the  road  to  this  knowledge,  He  spoke  of 
the  eunuchs  in  the  courts  of  Eastern  monarchs.  It  must 
needs  be  some  inherited  misfortune,  or  perhaps  their  mas- 
ter's cruelty,  which  had  put  them  beyond  the  reach  of  car- 
marriage  bond,  for  He  adds  directly  :  "  And  he  who  weddeth  the  woman 
thus  put  away,  committeth  adultery." 

1  Markx.  30. 

2  Matt.  xix.  10-12. 


142       THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MNISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

mil  delights ;  yet  Low  much  mightier  and  more  efficacious 
is  the  Christian's  holiness,  which,  by  spiritual  strength,  suf- 
fices to  transform  the  eunuch  of  the  Heavenly  Courts  into 
a  man  who,  while  tarrying  in  these  our  fleshly  habitations, 
is  no  longer  of  the  llesh,1  but  partakes  rather  of  the  Angel 
than  of  man.  Still,  as  yet  Jesus  could  not  do  more  than 
barely  lift  the  veil  which  concealed  this  austere  continency 
from  the  ancient  world,  and  that  but  for  an  instant. 

"  Whosoever  is  able  to  understand,  let  him  understand  ! " 
He  said  to  His  disciples. 

But  there  were  few  among  them  so  freed  from  the 
slavery  of  the  senses  as  to  be  able  to  glimpse  the  loveli- 
ness of  a  virgin  soul.  It  would  be  necessary  for  the  Holy 
Spirit  to  descend  upon  them  ere  their  ears  could  be  opened 
to  that  hymning  of  Virgins  to  which  John  hearkened  in 
the  celestial  Vision,  —  "  harmonious  as  the  quiring  of  many 
harps,  a  song  which  none  can  either  learn  or  understand, 
save  only  they  that  follow  the  Lamb  whithersoever  He 
goeth."  2 

Even  as  He  was  speaking,  the  Saviour  noted  the  entrance 
of  a  little  group  of  mothers  who  had  brought  with  them 
their  little  ones.3  Learning  that  the  Master  was  about  to 
depart  from  their  neighborhood  they  were  eager  to  have 
Him  lay  His  hands  upon  the  children's  heads  and  breathe 
a  prayer  over  them.  Indeed  it  was  then  a  hallowed  usage 
among  pious  folk  to  beg  a  blessing  for  their  babies  at 
the  hands  of  Doctors  whom  they  revered ; 4  and  Jesus  all 
the  more  willingly  sanctioned  the  old  custom  because  the 
sweet  purity  of  babyhood  always  refreshed  and  gladdened 
His  heart.  But  the  Apostles  only  regarded  these  new- 
comers as  troublesome  intruders,  and  "  they  rebuffed  them 
with  harsh  words ; "  and  thereat  Jesus  was  much  displeased 
with  them,  saying :  — 

1  "  Habent  aliquid  jam  non  carnis  in  came  "  (S.  Augustine,  Be  Sancta 
Virginitate,  xii.). 

2  Apoc.  xiv.  2-4. 

8  Luke  xviii.  15-17  ;  Mark  x.  13-16  ;  Matt.  xix.  13-15.  The  terms 
used  by  the  Evangelists  :  wpoa{<ptpov,  iraioia,  j3p4<pTj,  indicate  that  they 
were  all  very  young  children. 

*  Masseccth  Sopherim,  xviii.  5 ;  Sohar,  3,  etc. 


JESUS    WITH  THE   CHILDREN.  143 

"  Suffer  these  little  children  and  forbid  them  not  to  come 
unto  Me,  for  God's  Kingdom  is  for  such  as  are  like  unto 
them."  And  immediately,  calling  them  about  Him,  He 
took  them  into  His  arms,  laid  His  hands  upon  them,  and 
blessed  them.1 

The  disciples  stood  gazing  at  this  scene,  amazed  at  seeing 
Him  display  such  tender  familiarity  with  children;  they 
did  not  know,  as  yet,  that  it  belonged  to  Jesus  to  quicken 
these  feeble  bodies  with  an  invisible  life,  and  make  them 
heirs  of  a  heavenly  glory,  by  the  gift  of  Baptism.  Already 
He  had  proclaimed  their  prerogatives  more  than  once,  and 
again  on  this  day  He  declared  the  same  truth  once  more, 
for,  before  bidding  them  farewell,  He  held  these  little  ones 
up  as  the  model  for  His  disciples. 

"  In  very  truth,  I  say  unto  you,"  these  were  His  words, 
"  whoever  shall  not  receive  the  Kingdom  of  God  as  a  little 
chiLJ,  shall  not  enter  therein." 

Almost  immediately  Jesus  came  forth  from  the  dwelling 
in  which  He  had  been  giving  them  these  lovely  lessons  of 
life  and  proceeded  along  the  road.  At  once  a  young  man 
came  running  after  Him.2 

According  to  Saint  Luke's  account3  he  was  a  personage  of 
distinction  in  those  parts,  a  youth  of  great  and  noble  heart, 
that  could  not  be  satisfied  with  the  righteousness  of  the 
Law,  but  hungered  and  thirsted  for  purer  and  higher 
truths.  All  that  he  had  heard  about  Jesus  made  him  hope 
that  the  Master  would  soon  reveal  the  mysteries  which  still 
overshadowed  the  ancient  Scriptures ;  and  he  made  haste 
to  kneel  before  Him,  asking  :  — 

"  Good  Master,  what  shall  I  do  that  I  may  have  eternal 
life?" 

Jesus  did  not  accept  this  praise. 

1  KarevXdyei,  "  Idem  quod  ev\oyeio,  sed  fortius  :  Yalde  alicui  boua 
apprecor  "  (Wahl,  Clavis  Novi  Tcstamcuti). 

2  The  expressions  whereby  SS.  Mark  and  Matthew  connect  this  inci- 
dent with  the  blessing  of  the  babies  show  that  the  young  man  must  have 
hurried  up  just  as  Jesus  was  leaving  the  house  :  Kal  eKwopev/ievov  avrou  els 
bobv,  Trpocrdpa/jLui'  eis  .  .  .  (Mark  x.  17). — Kal  ewidds  to?  x€?Pas  olvtois 
eiropetdT]  ticeWev.      Kal  idoii  eis  irpocre\duii>  .   .   .    (Matt.  xix.  15,  16). 

3  Luke  xviii.  18-23. 


144      THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

"  Why  do  you  call  Me  good  ? "  He  said  ;  "  why  do  you 
question  Me  concerning  that  which  is  good  ? *  There  is 
none  good  save  God  alone." 

His  answer  plainly  implies  that  this  young  nobleman 
sought  in  Jesus  only  a  man  like  himself,  and  it  was  meant 
to  teach  him  that,  as  mercy  and  goodness  are  in  the  gift  of 
the  Divine  Being,  he  must  not  seek  them  of  any  of  His 
creatures,  —  who  obtain  them  by  grace, —  but  from  (Jod 
Himself,  in  Whom  they  abide  in  their  fulness.  But  nev- 
ertheless, added  the  Lord,  "if  you  would  enter  into  life, 
keep  the  commandments." 

"  Which  commandments  ?"  ejaculated  the  young  man  in 
amazement;  for  lie  had  looked  for  some  new  light,  and 
could  not  believe  that  the  Master  would  simply  refer  him 
to  the  Precepts  of  the  Law. 

To  make  him  understand  that  God  esteems  humble 
faith  as  of  higher  worth  than  splendid  achievements,  Jesus 
merely  quoted  from  the  Mosaic  ordinances  those  duties 
which  govern  the  every-day  life  of  men  :  — 

"Thou  shalt  not  be  an  adulterer;  thou  shalt  not  kill; 
thou  shalt  not  steal ;  thou  shalt  not  bear  false  witness ; 
thou  shalt  not  defraud  any  one ;  honor  thy  father  and  thy 
mother,  and  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself."2 

"Master,"  replied  the  young  man  in  his  bewilderment, 
"  I  have  observed  all  this  from  my  youth ;  what  lack  I 
yet  ? "  3 

Jesus,  looking  long  upon  him,  loved  him,  for  He  saw  the 
lad  was  of  a  true  and  upright  heart,  sincere  and  earnest  in 
the  pursuit  of  righteousness  : 4  rising  above  the  beaten  roads 
which  all  must  run,  He  pointed  out  the  narrow  track,  which 
leads  the  Saints  up  to  the  far  heights  of  perfection. 

1  Matt.  xix.  17  ;  Mark  x.  18.  The  Codex  Ephrremi  mid  many  versions 
have,  in  S.  Matthew,  the  same  question  which  we  find  in  the  other  two 

Synoptic  writers  :  "Why  do  you  call  Mr  good?"    But  the  testii ly  ol 

the  Vulgate,  the  Syriac  of  Cureton,  the  Manuscripts  of  Sinai  and  the  Vati- 
can, with  Beza's  Codex,  is  enough  to  warrant  us  in  believing  that,  beside 
His  first  query,  Jesus  added  the  words  which  follow:  "  Why  do  you  ques- 
tion Mi-  us  to  what  is  good?" 

-  Mark  x.  lit. 

8  Matt.  xix.  20. 

4  Mark  x.  21. 


THE  RICH  YOUNG  MAN  145 

"  One  thing  is  lacking  yet,"  He  said;  "go,  sell  all  that  yon 
have,  and  give  it  to  the  poor.  You  shall  have  a  treasure  in 
Heaven ;  then  come  and  follow  me."  1 

It  was  too  much  ;  the  young  Jew's  courage  failed  him  ; 
a  great  sadness  2  fell  upon  his  soul.  Grief-struck  and  with 
a  sombre  3  countenance,  "  he  went  away,  for  he  had  great 
possessions." 

Jesus  followed  him  with  His  eyes,4  thinking  on  all  the 
souls  that  would  be  ruined  by  riches,  and  looking  about 
Him  at  His  disciples, — 

"How  difficult  it  is,"  He  said  to  them,  "for  the  rich5  to 
enter  into  God's  Kingdom  ! " 

It  was  not  the  first  time  the  Master  had  expressed  Him- 
self thus  before  them,  but  their  ears,  as  well  as  their  hearts, 
were  closed  to  the  truths  which  offended  and  shocked 
them;  and  they  were  as  much  astonished  now  at  this 
saying  as  though  it  were  some  new  thing. 

Jesus  gave  no  signs  of  irritation ;  yet,  without  abating 
one  whit  of  its  former  severity,  He  repeated  what  He  had 
often  said,  but  in  the  most  touching  manner ;  no  mother 
ever  displayed  greater  tenderness  in  pressing  to  her  baby's 
lips  the  bitter  drink  which  will  save  its  life. 

"  My  dearly  beloved  sons,"  came  the  answer,  "  ah  !  how 
hard  it  is  for  those  that  trust  in  riches  to  enter  into  the 
Kingdom  of  God !  It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  pass  through 
the  eye  of  a  needle,6  than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  into  God's 
Kingdom." 

1  Luke  xviii.  22.  The  Alexandrian  Manuscript  and  several  versions 
add  to  the  words  "  Follow  Me  "  these  also  :  "bearing  the  cross,"  dpas  rbv 
aravpov.  This  addition  is  not  to  be  found  either  in  the  Vulgate  or  in 
most  of  the  Manuscripts  ;  hence  we  believe  it  ought  to  be  rejected. 

2  IleplXviros  (Luke  xviii.  23). 
8  Zrvyv&aas  (Mark  x.  22). 

4  Luke  xviii.  24. 

6  Mark  x.  23-27. 

6  This  was  a  proverbial  figure  of  speech  in  familiar  use  with  the  Hebrews 
to  designate  anything  impossible  or  difficult  of  accomplishment  (see  Light- 
foot,  Horce  Hebraiccc,  in  loco).  It  is  not  necessary  therefore,  upon  the  evi- 
dence of  some  unimportant  manuscripts,  to  change  KaparfKov,  a  camel,  into 
KapuXov,  a  cable  ;  or  to  suppose  that  in  Jerusalem  there  was  a  gate  reserved 
for  foot-passengers,  which,  as  it  was  too  low  for  the  camels  to  enter,  gave 
rise  to  this  hyperbolical  comparison. 

VOL.  II.  —  10 


140      TUIRh   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

Thus  the  sentence  was  formal  and  explicit ;  it  condemned 

all  attachment  to  earthly  goods.  The  Apostles  were  still 
more  amazed,  and,  standing  there,  they  began  to  say  to  one 
another,  — 

"  But,  then,  who  can  be  saved  ? " 

Looking  at  them  still,  Jesus  replied  in  the  same  gentle 
accents :  — 

"With  men  this  is  impossible,  but  not  with  God,  for 
with  God  all  things  are  possible." 

Peter,  as  hasty  and  eager  as  ever,  always  the  first  to  re- 
gain his  courage  as  he  was  first  to  despair,  —  Peter  here 
broke  in  upon  his  Master.1 

"  Lord,"  said  he,  "  we  have  left  all  to  follow  you,  what 
shall  there  be  for  us  ? " 

The  Saviour's  response  was  a  succession  of  promises  :  for 
the  Apostles,  there  were  set  twelve  Thrones  whence  they 
should  judge  the  tribes  of  Israel  in  the  day  when,  with  all 
tilings  born  unto  the  new  life,2  the  Son  of  Man  shall  take 
possession  of  the  Throne  of  His  Majesty;  and  for  all  His 
faithful  disciples,  even  from  this  present  time,  an  hundred- 
fold for  everything  they  shall  have  left,  whether  it  be  home, 
or  brothers,  sisters,  parents,  husband  or  wife,  children  or 
lands ; 3  a  foretaste  of  Heaven  "  even  in  the  midst  of  perse- 
cution, and  in  the  ages  to  come  life  everlasting." 

So  gracious  and  glorious  were  those  prerogatives  that 
Jesus  feared  lest  His  Apostles  should  be  puffed  up  with 
pride  at  the  glowing  prospect,  and  imagine  that  such  was 
their  rightful  inheritance ;  for  this  reason  He  went  on  at 
once  to  add  that  they  were  purely  the  gifts  of  grace,  and 
that  if  the  sons  of  Israel  were  the  first  to  be  called,  yet  the 
Gentiles  should  precede  them  and  share  all  things  with 
them  in  that  celestial  kingdom.  The  heavenly  Father,  in 
that  new  Kealm,  is  like  the  lord  of  a  vineyard,4  who  hires 

1  Matt.  xix.  27-29.  2  YlaXiyytvecrLa.  (Matt.  xix.  28). 

3  .Mark  x.  29,  30.  In  the  earliest  ages  of  Christianity  this  saying  of 
the  Master  was  accomplished  to  the  letter.  The  doors  of  all  the  faithful 
were  opened  to  every  homeless  one  ;  their  goods  were  in  common,  and  the 
fact  that  their  hearts  were  so  closely  united  together  made  the  Church  but 
one  great  family. 

4  Matt.  xx.  1-16. 


THE    WORKMEN  IN  THE   VINEYARD.  147 

workmen  at  different  hours  of  the  day;1  when  the  night 
comes2  he  is  free  to  reward  the  lust  comers  with  the  dena- 
rius promised  to  those  who  have  toiled  since  daybreak ;  for 
that  same  denarius  represents  Eternal  Life,  which  is  be- 
yond anything  man  can  merit,  —  a  gratuitous  recompense, 
born  of  God's  boundless  love. 

To  the  Jews  who  grudge  the  Gentiles  their  portion,  to 
the  Pharisees  of  every  age,  God  will  make  answer :  — 

"  My  friend,  I  do  you  no  wrong ;  did  you  not  agree  with 
Me  for  a  denarius  ?  Then  take  what  is  yours  and  go.  If 
notwithstanding  I  wish  to  give  unto  this  last  as  much  as 
to  you,  is  it  not  lawful  for  me  to  do  what  I  will  with  Mine 
own,  and  must  your  eye  be  evil,3  because  I  am  good  ?" 

And  Jesus  concluded  by  uttering  one  of  those  maxims 
He  so  often  repeated,  which  were  so  heart-rending  to  the 
haughty  spirit  of  the  Jews  :  — 

"  The  first  shall  be  last,  and  the  last  first." 

"  Many  are  called  but  few  chosen  ! " 

1  The  Jews,  while  they  made  use  of  the  Chaldean  method  of  calculation, 
divided  the  day  like  the  Romans,  not  only  into  twelve  hours  but  into  four 
periods,  each  one  comprising  three  hours.  The  first  period  commenced  at 
six  in  the  morning,  the  wpwt  of  the  Parable  ;  the  second  about  nine,  irepl 
Tpir-qv  ;  the  third  at  noon,  irepi  ticrrpi',  the  fourth  at  three  in  the  afternoon, 
€wa.T7)v.  The  eleventh  hour,  when  the  master  of  the  vineyard  went  out  for 
the  last  time,  answers  to  about  five  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

2  According  to  the  law  of  Moses,  the  workman's  salary  must  be  paid  on 
the  same  day  (Deut.  xxiw  15). 

3  The  evil  look  or  evil  eye  is  a  figure  frequently  employed  in  ancient 
times  to  signify  envy. 


CHAPTER  XII 

JERICHO   AND   BETHANY. 

Luke  xviii.  31-43  ;  xix.  1-28  ;  Mark  x.  32-52  ;  xiv.  3-9  ;  Matt.  xx.  17- 
34  ;  xxvi.  6-13  ;  John  xii.  1-11. 

Preaching  and  blessing  His  people  Jesus  descended  the 
eastern  bank  of  the  Jordan.  Arrived  at  the  spot  where 
the  road  veers  off  Jerusalemward  and  crosses  the  stream 
the  disciples  saw  that  He  was  making  as  if  to  take  that 
direction,  and  they  were  seized  with  such  trepidation  and 
dismay  that  for  the  most  part  they  stood  motionless  and 
dumfounded ;  the  Master,  however,  walked  on  before 
them,1  and  the  Apostles  aloue  slowly  followed,  but  at  a 
distance,  and  filled  with  overwhelming  fears.2 

The  Saviour  stopped,  made  a  sign  to  the  Twelve  to  draw 
nearer,  and  thereupon  announced  His  Passion3  for  the 
third  time,  foretelling  clearly  (which  hitherto  He  had  not 
done)  that  He  was  to  hang  upon  the  Cross. 

"  Look  you  now,  we  are  going  up  to  Jerusalem,"  He  said, 
"  and  soon  all  things  which  the  Prophets  have  written 
concerning  the  Son  of  Man  shall  be  accomplished.  He 
shall  be  delivered  unto  the  Princes  of  the  Priesthood  and 

1  'Herat1  a.vaj3aivovT€s  as  'Ie/30<x6\i'/xa,  Kal  r\v  irpoaywv  aiirovs  6  \-qaovs  ko.1 
idanPovvro  (Mark  x.  32). 

2  01  dt  aKoXovOovvres  e<f>ofiovvTO  (Mark  x.  32).  The  words  ol  de,  adopted 
by  Tischendorf,  Tregelles,  etc.,  upon  the  authority  of  the  Sinaitic  and 
Vatican  MSS.,  and  that  of  Beza's  Codex,  indicate  that  only  a  part  of  the 
disciples  followed  the  Lord ;  and  that  this  most  faithful  little  Hock  was 
composed  of  the  Twelve  is  evident,  because  Jesus  at  once  summons  them  : 
Kai  7rapaXa/3d)v  -k6\lv  toi>s  5w5e/ca  (Mark  x.  32). 

3  He  first  predicted  it  at  Cresarea-Philippi,  after  the  Confession  of  Peter 
(Matt.  xvi.  21),  and  the  second  time  after  the  Transfiguration  (Matt.  xvii. 
21-22). 


JERICHO  AND  BETHANY.  149 

to  the  Scribes,  and  they  shall  condemn  Him  to  death,  and 
they  shall  deliver  Him  to  the  Gentiles.  He  shall  be 
mocked  and  reviled ;  they  shall  spit  upon  His  face ;  after 
they  have  scourged  Him  they  shall  crucify  Him,  and  the 
third  day  He  shall  rise  again."  1 

Jesus  could  not  have  described  in  distincter  terms  the 
sufferings  by  which  He  must  needs  establish  His  King- 
dom ;  but  the  disciples  were  so  engrossed  in  their  Judaic 
visions  of  the  Messiah's  Advent  "  that  they  understood 
naught  of  all  these  things,  and  this  saying,"  plain  and  un- 
mistakable as  it  was,  "  remained  hidden  to  them."  2  They 
only  concluded  that  their  Master  was  soon  to  inaugurate 
His  Reign,  and  thus  they  were  as  much  preoccupied  as 
ever  with  dreams  of  wondrous  wealth,  mighty  thrones,  and 
earthly  greatness. 

Certainly  nothing  could  give  us  a  better  idea  of  the 
heavy  bandage  which  covered  their  eyes  than  the  step 
taken  just  at  this  juncture  by  the  wife  of  Zebedee3  the 
fisherman. 

Her  two  sons  hurried  to  her  side,  overflowing  with  all 
they  had  just  been  hearing  from  the  Lord's  lips;  they  in- 
structed her  that  there  were  great  things  now  close  at  hand, 
grievous  trials,  to  be  followed  shortly  by  a  splendid  Resur- 
rection and  a  surpassing  glory.  Was  it  not  high  time  to 
arrange  for  the  foremost  places  under  the  Messiah's  new 
reign  ?  Eager  and  excited  as  James  and  John  were,  they 
knew  with  what  sternness  the  Master  rebuked  anything 
like  selfish  ambition ;  they  therefore  durst  not  utter  their 
requests  themselves.  But  their  mother  Salome,  like  many 
other  women,  had  quitted  Galilee  to  be  one  of  His  com- 
panions and  minister  to  His  needs.4  Her  sons  believed 
that  her  prayer  would  be  all-powerful  to  reach  the  heart 
of  Jesus,  and  so  they  made  her  a  sharer  in  their  hio-h- 
soaring  hopes. 

With  the  two  young  men  following  after  she  made  her 

»  Luke  xviii.  31-33 ,  Mark  x.  33,  34  ;  Matt.  xx.  18,  19. 

a  Luke  xviii.  34. 

3  Matt.  xx.  20  ;  Mark  x.  35-40. 

*  Luke  viii.  2. 


150       THIRD  YEAR  OF  TEE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

way  to  the  Lord,  knelt  down  at  His  feet,  and  besought 
Him  to  grant  whatever  she  might  ask  of  Him, 

"What  is  it  you  desire  ("  Jesus  responded. 

"  Only  say,"  proceeded  Salome,  "  that  my  two  sons  here 
may  sit,  the  one  on  your  right  hand,  the  other  on  your 
left,  in  your  kingdom."  l 

The  Saviour  had  compassion  upon  their  blindness;  to 
right  and  to  left  of  Him  but  a  lew  days  later  there  would 
be  raised  two  crosses,  and  upon  them  two  tortured  thieves 
would  meet  a  dreadful  death. 

"  You  know  not  what  you  ask,"  He  said  quietly ;  then 
openly  alluding  to  the  awful  pangs  of  His  Passion  and 
bloody  death,  "  Can  you  drink  the  chalice2  which  I  must 
drink,"  He  demanded,  "  or  receive  the  baptism  wherewith 
I  must  be  baptized  ? " 

James  and  John  fancied  that  all  this  merely  meant 
whether  they  dared  to  brave  some  great  peril  for  His 
sake,  and  they  replied  instantly,  — 

"  We  can  !  " 

Jesus  loved  the  generous  souls  of  these  two  "  Sons  of 
the  Thunder,"  and  later  on  He  would  accept  their  sacri- 
fice ;  for  James  did  indeed  meet  a  Martyr's  death,  the  first 
of  all  the  Apostles,  and  John  survived  the  rest  only  that 
he  might  fulfil  a  longer  space  of  suffering.  But  as  for  the 
first  seats  in  His  Kingdom,  the  Master  declared  that  He 
was  unable  to  show  partiality  in  disposing  of  them,  for 
God  alone  dispenses  the  graces  whereby  the  highest  merits 
are  attained,3  and  man  himself  can  alone  render  those  graces 
efficacious  by  corresponding  to  the  designs  of  Heaven. 

1  That  is,  iii  the  two  foremost  places  (3  Kings  ii.  19  ;  xxii.  19  ;  Jose- 
phus,  Aiitiquitatcs,  vi.  11,  9). 

-  .Matt.  xxvi.  39  ;  Mark  xiv.  36  ;  Luke  xxii.  42  ;  John  xviii.  11.  Ter- 
tullian  had  in  mind  that  baptism  of  which  Jesus  is  speaking  here,  when 
he  called  martyrdom  a  Baptism,  the  hath  of  blood,  "lavaerum  sanguinis" 
( Scarp i 'are,  6). 

3  Wlici i  lb'  reserves  tin;  distribution  of  these  honorable  places  exclu- 
sively to  His  heavenly  Father,  Jesus  is  speaking  simply  as  a  Man  ;  for  as 
God  He  was  soon  to  say  to  His  Father  :  "All  that  is  Thine  is  Mine,  and 
all  that  is  Mine  is  Thine"  (John  xvii.  10);  while  to  His  Apostles  He  says : 
"  I  dispose  of  My  Kingdom  in  your  favor,  as  My  Father  has  disposed  of 
Mine"  (Luke  xxii.  29). 


JERICHO  AND  BETHANY.  151 

However  secretly  the  two  brothers  had  preferred  their 
request  it  reached  the  ears  of  the  Apostles.1  All  were 
highly  incensed  ;  they  had  already  begun  to  inveigh  against 
the  ambitious  pair,  each  boasting  of  his  own  great  merits, 
when  Jesus  called  them  to  Him.  Again  He  set  to  work 
teaching  them,  as  He  had  done  so  many  times  before,  that 
in  His  holy  Realm  the  highest  rank  is  reserved  for  the 
humblest  souls  ;  just  the  opposite  of  those  earthly  empires 
where  the  great  ones  of  a.  day  seek  only  to  enhance  the 
splendor  of  their  borrowed  authority,2  "  he  who  is  first  in 
the  Church  must  be  the  servant  of  all,  and  imitate  that 
Model,  which  is  the  Son  of  Man,  Who  came,  not  to  be 
served,  but  Himself  to  serve,  and  to  give  His  life  for  the 
redemption  of  many."  3 

Meantime  Jesus  and  His  companions  had  crossed  Jor- 
dan-Valley and  were  approaching  Jericho.  By  this  name 
they  designated  what  was  in  those  days  an  oasis  glittering 
with  the  clustered  pleasure-houses  and  gardens  of  the  great, 
glowing  with  palm-trees  and  fields  of  roses.  At  either  ex- 
tremity of  this  rich  stretch  of  country  two  towns  had  been 
built :  near  the  fountain  of  Eliseus 4  stood  the  Jericho  of 
ancient  days,  overthrown  by  Joshua  and  reconstructed  by 
Hiel  of  Bethel , 5  at  the  southern  end  was  the  new  city  of 
Jericho,  a  magnificent  pile  of  edifices  erected  by  Herod 
and  Archelaus.6 

As  the  Lord  was  passing  along  the  highway  which  con- 
nects these  two  cities  He  came  across  a  blind  man  seated 
by  the  wayside ;  it  was  the  son  of  Timeus  (Bar-Timeus), 

1  Mark  x.  41-45. 

2  02  doKovpres  dpxew,  those  who  fancy  they  have  authority,  who  arrogate 
to  themselves  this  title  of  king,  which  properly  belongs  to  God  alone. 

3  This  does  not  mean  that  Jesus  did  not  die  for  all.  AvtI  iroWwv  is 
only  used  here  in  opposition  to  the  one  life  of  Jesus,  which  is  sufficient  to 
redeem  so  many  souls. 

4  Ilapd.  T7)v  TraXcuav  ava(3\vt;ov<ra  tt6\iv  (Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum, 
iv.  8,  3). 

5  3  Kings  xvi.  34. 

6  "This  New  Jericho  occupied  a  different  site  from  that  of  the  old 
town,  and  was  probably  built  along  the  borders  of  Oued  el-Kelt,  near  the 
spot  which  is  known  nowadays  by  the  name  of  Kharbet-Kakoun  "  (Guerin, 
Description  de  la  Samarie,  t.  i.  chap.  ii.  See,  too,  this  learned  Geogra- 
pher's history  of  Jericho), 


152      THIRD   YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

who  was  Legging  in  company  with  another  unfortunate.1 

A  great  concourse  of  people  had  already  crowded  about 
Jesus,  and  were  following  Him  from  town  to  town,  mean- 
ing to  enter  Herod's-  city  of  Jericho  in  His  train.  The 
blind  men  listened  to  the  clamor  of  the  multitude;  learn- 
ing that  it  was  Jesus  of  Nazareth  they  began  to  cry  out,  — 
"  Jesus,  Sun  of  David,  have  pity  upon  us!" 
Their  shrill  shouts  kept  growing  more  importunate  until 
those  who  passed  before  them  began  to  rail  at  them,  bid- 
din-  them  hold  their  peace.  They  only  cried  out  the 
louder, — 

"  Have  pity  on  us,  0  Lord,  Son  of  David  ' "  3 
Touched  with  compassion  Jesus  stopped  and  commanded 
that  they  be  brought  to  Him.     A  number  hurried  to  Bar- 
Timeus. 

"  Be  of  good  cheer,"  they  told  him ;  "  rise  up,  He  is 
calling  you." 

The  blind  man  cast  away  his  long  mantle,  and  guided 
by  those  who  were  nearest  him  rushed  toward  where  Jesus 
stood. 

1  Matt.  xx.  29-34  ;  Mark  x.  46-52  ;  Luke  xviii.  35-43.  The  Synoptic 
writers,  all  three  of  whom  recount  this  incident,  offer  some  notable  differ- 
ences in  their  narratives  :  S.  Matthew  speaks  of  two  blind  men  ;  the  other 
Evangelists  name  l>:it  one.  8.  Matthew  says  that  the  miracle  took  place 
upon  their  leaving  Jericho  ;  S.  Luke  tells  us  it  occurred  just  as  Jesus 
entered  the  town.  It  is  commonly  supposed  that  they  were  two  distinct 
cures,  — one  operated  by  the  Saviour  on  His  entry  into  the  city,  and  the 
other  upon  the  morrow,  when  He  departed.  Hut  the  repetition  of  the  same 
words  in  both  cases  renders  this  hypothesis  hardly  tenable.  In  all  likeli- 
hood it  refers  to  one  and  the  same  event ;  probably  there  were  two  blind 
men,  as  S.  Matthew  relates,  ami  as  one  of  them,  named  Bar-Timeus,  was 
the  better  known  in  Jericho,  SS  Mark  and  Luke  have  mentioned  only 
him.  It  is  enough  to  recall,  as  we  have  done  above,  that  there  were  then 
two  distinct  towns  bearing  the  name  of  Jericho,  and  only  separated  From 
each  other  by  a  half  hour's  journey  (Guerin,  Samarie,  t.  i.  p.  :!7),  in  order 
to  conclude  that  the  miracle  might  easily  have  taken  place  somewhere 
between  these  two  cities,  while  Jesus  was  leaving  the  one  and  about  to 
enter  the  other. 

2  Zacheus,  toward  whom  the  Lord  was  walking,  must  have  resided  in 
the  Jericho  of  Archelaus,  for  the  Parable  of  tin-  Mina,  which  according  to 
all  appearances  was  delivered  in  the  publican's  mansion,  makes  continual 
allusions  to  that  prince. 

3  Isaiah  had  foretold  that  the  Messiah,  Son  of  David,  would  restore 
sight  to  the  blind  (Is.  xxxv.  5). 


JEM CUO  AND  BETHANY.  153 

"  What  would  you  have  Me  to  do  for  you  ? "  said  the 
Lord. 

"  Master,"  he  replied,  "  that  I  may  see ! " 

"  Go,"  Jesus  said  ;  "  your  faith  has  saved  you." 

In  like  manner  He  called  the  other  blind  man ;  laying 
His  hands  upon  His  eyes  they  were  opened ;  and  the  twu 
followed  on  alter  Him  in  the  midst  of  a  multitude  that 
joined  them  in  shouting  glory  and  praise  to  God. 

There  were  still  some  six  hours  of  foot-travel  before  they 
could  reach  Bethany.  Jesus  resolved  to  spend  the  night 
in  Jericho.1  Along  these  grand  streets,  through  which  re- 
sounded the  shouts  of  the  throngs  proclaiming  His  glory, 
many  doors  would  then  eagerly  have  been  Hung  open  to 
welcome  Him,  but,  even  to  the  last  day  steadfast  in 
His  design  of  seeking  out  the  lost  sheep  of  Israel,  He 
asked  the  hospitality  of  a  dwelling  despised  by  all  the 
citizens. 

At  this  time  there  were  many  publicans  residing  in 
Jericho  ;  for  this  city  was  the  bonding- warehouse  of  Perea, 
and  the  .Roman  treasury  here  regulated  its  tax-levies 
upon  the  incoming  wealth  of  the  valley,  and  particularly 
upon  the  balm  which  is  so  abundant  in  this  country.  At 
the  head  of  the  tax-collectors 2  was  a  personage  named 
Zacheus,  hated  by  the  populace  because  of  the  great  for- 
tune he  had  accumulated  in  the  exercise  of  his  office,  and 
especially  because,  though  by  birth  a  Jew,  he  lent  his  aid 
to  their  foreign  masters.  Notwithstanding,  he  was  a  gen- 
erous and  upright  man,  much  nearer  the  Kingdom  of 
Heaven  than  his  enemies. 

As  it  happened,  on  this  day  all  his  efforts  to  get  sight 
of  Jesus  were  unavailing,  for  the  crowd  kept  thrusting  him 
aside  contemptuously,  and  his  short  stature  did  not  allow 
his    seeing    very   far.     At    last    he    resolved    to    run    on 

1  Luke  xix.  1-10. 

2  The  title  apxt-TeXwvrjs  does  not  necessarily  suppose  that  Zacheus  was 
of  the  number  of  those  rich  financiers  who  farmed  the  revenues  of  the 
Roman  Republic.  Some  few  Jews,  it  is  true,  obtained  this  privilege 
(Josephus,  Bellum  Jucln'icum,  ii.  14,  9),  but  there  is  nothing  to  indicate 
that  Zacheus  was  raised  to  such  a  dignity  as  this ;  probably  he  was  but 
the  head  of  the  tax-gatherers  stationed  at  Jericho. 


154     THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

ahead  and  climb  into  an  Egyptian  fig-tree1  which  over- 
shadowed tin.;  road.  The  Saviour  would  surely  pass  by 
this  spot,  and  so  Zacheus  would  at  last  get  sight  of  Him 
Who  was  known  as  "The  Friend  of  the  Publicans."  His 
good  fortune  exceeded  his  brightest  hopes;  for  he  beheld 
the  Master,  as  He  trod  the  dusty  highway,  halt,  raise  His 
eyes,  and,  meeting  his  longing  look,  heard  Him  call  him 
by  name. 

"  Zacheus,  make  haste  and  come  down,  for  to-day  I 
must  lodge  in  your  house." 

The  publican  instantly  obeyed,  and  overwhelmed  with 
gladness  conducted  the  Christ  to  his  residence. 

The  Jews  followed  after  with  murmurs  of  disapproval. 

"He  is  going  to  lodge  in  the  house  of  a  sinner!"  they 
said,  and  all  were  incensed  that,  while  disdaining  the 
Levites  and  nobility  of  Jericho,  Jesus  should  reserve  His 
favors  for  this  outcast  of  the  people. 

But  their  insults  and  jeers  had  little  effect  upon  the 
happy  host;  overflowing  with  great  joy  he  opened  his 
heart  to  the  Saviour  even  before  he  could  fling  wide  the 
gates  of  his  home,  and  by  such  tokens  proved  his  worthi- 
ness to  be  admitted  into  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  And 
indeed  on  the  morrow,2  standing  up  before  the  multitude, 
he  made  this  generous  renunciation  :  — 

"  Lord,  behold,  now  I  give  the  half  of  my  goods  to  the 
poor,  and  for  every  wrong  that  I  have  done  3  I  now  return 
fourfold." 

1  Zacheus'  sycamore  was  not  the  majestic  tree  that  ornaments  our 
gardens,  which  the  botanists  have  named  more  exactly  the  false- plane- 
tree-maple  ;  his  was  the  sycamore-fig,  or  the  Egyptian-fig-tree  (Pliny,  His- 
toria  naturalis,  xiii.  14),  quite  like  the  fig-tree  from  its  fruit,  but  in  size 
and  foliage  like  the  mulberry  ;  hence  its  name:  cvkt),  a  fig-tree,  and  fxopea, 
mulberry. 

-  In  fact  S.  Luke  says  that  Jesus  delivered  the  Parable  of  the  Mina 
to  those  who  listened  to  His  conversation  with  Zacheus  :  'Akovovtwv  8e 
a&Twv  ravra  Trpoadth,  dirtv  Trapa^oXrjv  (xix.  11),  and  that  immediately 
afterwards  He  departed  for  Jerusalem  ;  hence  it  could  not  have  taken 
place  until  the  following  morning,  Kai  e'nrtoi'  ravra  eiropeuero  tp-rrpoodev, 
avafialvwv  eh  'lepocr6\vp.a  (xix.  28). 

3  In  his  humility  Zacheus  does  not  say  :  "  If  I  have  done  any  wrong  ; '' 
he  freely  proclaims  himself  a  sinful  man,  and  of  his  own  accord  binds  him- 
self to  the  reparation  which  the  law  demanded  in  cases  of  robbery  and 
fraud  (Ex.  xxii.  1). 


JERICHO  AND  BETHANY.  155 

In  a  word,  he  had  risen  far  above  the  perfection  pre- 
scribed by  the  Law ;  not  content  with  making  reparation 
for  the  past,  he  made  sacrifice  of  his  lawful  rights  and 
property,  offering  it  to  the  poor.  Moved  by  this  ready 
self-abnegation  the  Lord  held  up  this  publican,  ennobled 
by  his  charity,  as  a  model  for  the  people. 

"  To-day,"  He  said,  "  this  household  has  found  salva- 
tion, and  this  man  is  truly  a  child  of  Abraham,  for  the 
Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was 
lost," 

As  we  have  said,  this  took  place  on  the  day  following 
Zacheus'  reception  of  his  divine  Guest,  and  just  at  the 
moment  when  Jesus  was  taking  leave  of  His  host.1  The 
crowds  had  assembled  anew  about  the  portals  of  Zacheus' 
mansion,  and  impatiently  awaited  the  departure  of  the 
Master ;  for  His  reappearance  after  such  a  long  period  of 
seclusion,  the  Miracle  of  the  preceding  afternoon,  His 
avowed  intention  to  show  Himself  in  Jerusalem,  all  seemed 
to  imply  that  the  Mission  of  the  Christ  was  to  come 
speedily  to  an  issue.  Already  it  had  begun  to  be  common 
talk  in  Jericho  that  "  the  Kingdom  of  God  was  to  be  made 
manifest  immediately,"2  and  the  whole  town  was  absorbed 
in  expectancy.  Before  withdrawing  from  their  midst  the 
Lord  wished  to  dissipate  these  dreams  of  a  temporal  glory. 
High  up  in  sight  of  all  the  listening  town-folk  towered 
that  great  palace  which  Archelaus  had  built.3  This  monu- 
ment of  fallen  grandeur  was  a  perpetual  reminder  of  their 
exiled  prince  and  the  striking  features  of  his  reign,  —  his 
journey'  to  Home,  his  investiture  with  the  rule  of  Judea 4 
at  the  hands  of  Augustus,  the  Jews'  bitter  opposition  to 
this  proceeding,5  his  servants'  defence  of  their  master's 
estates  during  his  absence,  and  the  vengeance  which  he 
wreaked  upon  his  foes  on  his  return.  Out  of  these  remin- 
iscences still  burning  in  the  minds  of  His  auditors  Jesus 
saw  fit  to  compose  the  Parable  of  the  Pounds.6 

"  A  man  of  noble  birth  went  into  a  far-distant  region 

1  Luke  xix.  28.  2  Luke  xix.  11. 

3  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xvii.  13,  1.    4  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xvii.  11,  4, 

5  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xvii.  11,  2.  6  Luke  xix.  12-27. 


156       THIRD    YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

to  hike  possession  of  a  kingdom  and  to  return  speedily. 
Now,  after  calling  together  ten  of  his  servants,  he  gave 
them  ten  mina1  and  told  them  :  — 

"  'Trade  herewith  till  I  come.' 

"  Hut  the  people  of  his  land  hated  him  ;  and  they  sent 
an  embassy  after  him,  saying: — ■ 

"  'We  will  not  have  this  man  to  reign  over  us.' 

"  S<>,  when  he  returned,  having  taken  possession  of  the 
kingdom,  he  had  those  servants  summoned  to  whom  he 
had  given  the  money,  that  he  might  know  what  each  had 
gained  by  trading. 

"The  first  came,  saying:  — 

"  '  Lord,  your  mina  has  made  ten.' 

"  And  lie  said  to  him  :  — 

"  '  Well  done,  good  servant  that  you  are ;  because  you 
have  been  faithful  in  a  little  matter  you  shall  have  power 
over  ten  cities.' 

"And  the  second  came,  saying:  — 

"  '  Lord,  your  mina  has  made  five.' 

"  Then  he  said  to  him  also  :  — 

"  '  And  you  likewise  shall  be  over  five  cities.' 

"  And  the  other  came,  saying :  — 

'"Lord,  see,  here  is  your  mina  which  I  have  kept 
wrapped  up  in  a  napkin;2  for  I  feared  you,  because  you 
are.  an  austere  man  ;  you  take  up  what  you  laid  not  down, 
you  reap  that  which  you  have  not  sown.' 

"  Then  he  said  unto  him  :  — 

"  '  Thou  wicked  servant,  thou  shalt  be  judged  out  of 
thine  own  mouth.  Thou  knowest  that  I  am  an  austere 
man,  taking  up  what  I  have  not  laid  dowm,  and  reaping 
that  which  I  have  not  sown  ;  why,  then,  didst  thou  not 
give  my  money  into  the  bank,  that  at  my  return  I  might 

1  The  mina  was  the  sixtieth  part  of  a  talent.  If  here  S.  Luke  is  treat- 
ing of  Grecian  money  the  value  of  the  mina  in  the  Parable  is  about  .$1:3.50. 
If,  on  the  contrary,  lie  follows  the  Philitarian  system,  which  was  in  vogue 
in  Jerusalem  in  the  lime  of  Christ,  the  mina  was  worth  about  $37.50  (see 
Saigey,   Trail*'  <!,•  )n4trologie). 

2  tivSdpiov,  "sudarium"  (from  sudor),  one  of  the  Latin  words  which 
had  been  adopted  by  both  Greeks  and  Orientals.  The  Jews  frequently 
tied  their  money  in  a  (doth,  just  as  our  country-folk  do  to-day  (Sehoettgen, 
Hone  Hcbraicce,  in  loco). 


JERICHO  AND  BETHANY.  157 

have  exacted  it  with  usury  ? '  And  he  said  to  them  that 
stood  by :  — 

" '  Take  away  his  mina  from  him  and  give  it  to  him 
who  has  ten.' 

"  And  they  said  to  him  :  — 

"  '  Lord  he  has  ten  mina.' 

"  But  I  say  unto  you :  To  every  one  that  hath  it  shall 
be  given,  and  he  shall  abound ;  but  from  him  that  hath 
not  even  that  which  he  hath  shall  be  taken  away.  As  for 
those  mine  enemies,  which  would  not  that  I  should  reign 
over  them,  bring  them  hither  and  slay  them  in  my 
presence." 

By  its  allusions  to  those  current  events  which  were  even 
then  changing  the  face  of  Judea  this  Parable  captivated 
the  crowds,  while  at  the  same  time  it  answered  another 
purpose,  for  it  announced  to  the  Jews  who  looked  to  find 
in  Jesus  a  monarch  of  this  world  that  soon  they  would 
disown  Him,  and  in  Pilate's  Pretorium  would  repeat  the 
very  cry  once  uttered  by  the  enemies  of  Archelaus :  "  We 
will  not  have  this  man  to  reign  over  us  ! "  The  punish- 
ment of  the  rebels  would  certainly  be  fearful ;  but  to  the 
disciples,  on  the  contrary,  there  was  a  recompense  assured 
which  was  to  be  the  more  magnificent  in  proportion  as 
their  fidelity  should  show  itself  more  earnest  and  eager. 
Howbeit,  let  them  not  expect  to  receive  it  altogether  in 
this  life,  but  on  that  Day  when  the  Christ  shall  return 
invested  with  an  Eternal  Kinghood. 

With  this  prophetic  lesson  Jesus  left  the  people  of 
Jericho,  and  took  the  road  leading  toward  Jerusalem  in 
company  with  His  Apostles.  The  multitude  followed  Him 
respectfully ;  they  watched  Him  as  He  led  the  way  through 
the  deep  defiles  of  the  mountain,  making  His  way  up 
toward  the  Holy  City.1  But  He  did  not  mean  to  enter  its 
gates  on  this  day,  since  He  had  decided  to  stop  at  Beth- 
any, and  thus  make  Lazarus'  house  His  last  dwelling-place 
on  earth. 

He  reached  their  residence  on  Friday  evening,  about  the 
time  when,  with  the  setting  sun,  began  "the  sixth  day  be- 
1  Luke  xix.  28. 


158      THIRD  YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

fore  the  Passover."1  On  the  morrow  all  observed  the  Sacred 
Repose,  but  during  the  late  hours  of  that  Sabbath  after- 
noon2 the  Lord's  entertainers  celebrated  His  arrival  by  a 
great  feast,  which  took  place  "  in  the  house  of  Simon  the 
Leper."  "Who  was  this  townsman  of  Bethany,  who  is 
mentioned  nowhere  else  in  the  Gospel  ?  Did  he  owe  the 
cure  of  his  malady  to  the  Christ,  and  so  was  he  one  of 
those  who  sat  down  to  the  board  which  was  spread  in  his 
dining-hall  on  this  day  ?  Or,  again,  although  long  since  dead, 
is  he  mentioned  here  because  universally  known  as  the 
father  of  Lazarus  and  the  two  sisters  ?  Between  these 
conjectures,  both  equally  probable,  it  is  difficult  to  choose ; 
but,  whoever  Simon  the  Leper  may  have  been,  we  know 
that  the  dinner  given  in  his  mansion  was  of  sufficient 
splendor  to  attract  thither  a  goodly  company  of  Jews,  curi- 
ous to  see  Jesus  and  this  His  friend,  who  such  a  little  while 
ago  was  raised  from  the  dead. 

At  sight  of  the  Master  seated  beside  Lazarus,  and  remem- 
bering all  His  benefits,  Mary's  heart  was  thrilled,  and  she 
cast  about  in  her  mind  for  some  token  of  homage,  whereby 
to  give  evidence  of  her  gratefulness.3  At  once  her  memory 
reverted  to  the  repast  at  Nairn ;  she  recalled  the  floods  of 
tears  which  had  then  cleansed  her  heart  of  its  dark  stains 
and  the  perfumes  which  she  had  shed,  moved  by  a  great 
love.  Leaving  Martha  to  care  for  the  needs  of  their  guests, 
she  sped  away  in  search  of  an  alabaster4  vial  filled  with 
spikenard  of  exquisite  purity ; 5  taking  this  in  her  hands 

1  "  Six  days  before  the  Pasch"  (John  xii.  1),  that  is  to  say  Saturday. 
Indeed,  we  shall  see  that  this  year  the  Passover  fell  upon  a  Friday,  the 
fifteenth  of  Nisan.  The  eve  of  the  Feast,  Thursday,  —  when,  during  the 
last  hours,  the  immolation  of  the  lamb  was  commenced,  —  was  also 
regarded  as  the  first  day  of  the  Festival. 

-  'Evoi-qaav  Mvvov  (John  xi.  2),  "an  evening  meal." 

3  John  xii.  1-11. 

4  'AX&fiacrTpov  (Mark  xiv.  3),  a  tall  vase  with  a  slender  neck  sealed  with 
a  cork-stopper  ,  a  slight  pressure  upon  the  top  of  this  fragile  vessel  suf- 
ficed to  crush  it  and  spill  the  perfumes  enclosed,  "  Unguenta  opthne  ser- 
vantur  in  alabastris  "  (Pliny,  Historia  naturalis,  xiii.  3). 

4  The  meaning  of  the  word  Tri<TTiKrjs,  which  the  Vulgate  translates  as 
"spicati,"  is  still  uncertain.  Most  ancient  commentators  —  S.  Jerome, 
Theophylactus,  Euthymius  —  give  it  the  sense  of  "  pure,  real,  unadulter- 
ated," to  distinguish  it  from  the  false  or  imitation  spikenard  (Pliny,  His* 


JERICHO  AND  BETHANY.  159 

and  leaning  over  the  couch  on  which  Jesus  rested,  she  shat- 
tered the  fragile  vessel.  The  fragrant  stream  poured  over 
the  head  and  feet  of  the  Christ,  and  the  house  was  filled 
with  the  odor  of  the  ointment. 

Turning  on  His  arm,  Jesus  saw  this  woman  lying  at  His 
feet  as  once  before,  and  once  more  wiping  them  with  her 
heavy  locks.  She  was  generously  sacrificing,  in  His  honor, 
the  most  precious  possession  of  her  home  in  Bethany.  The 
Master  understood  her  heart,  and  with  silent  approbation 
accepted  Mary's  act  of  adoration.  But  the  Galileans,  who 
were  ranged  around  her,  were  indignant  at  seeing  a  treas- 
ure of  so  much  value  squandered  in  an  instant,  and  one  of 
them  went  so  far  as  to  openly  utter  his  complaints  against 
her,  —  it  was  Judas  Iskarioth. 

"  Could  not  this  perfume  have  been  sold  for  three  hun- 
dred denarii,1  and  that  sum  have  been  given  to  the  poor  ? " 

"Now  he  said  this,  not  that  he  cared  so  much  for  the 
poor,  but  because  he  was  a  thief,  and  having  the  purse,  he 
had  charge  2  of  what  was  given  for  it."  Then  taking  pat- 
tern from  him  the  Apostles  began  murmuring  and  repeated 
after  him  :  — 

"  What  good  is  done  by  this  waste  ? "  3 

Jesus  reproved  them. 

"  Why  do  you  molest  this  woman  ? "  He  said.  "  For  you 
will  always  have  the  poor  with  you,  and  when  you  will, 
you  may  do  them  good  ;  but  Me  you  have  not  always.  As 
for  her,  so  much  as  lay  in  her  power,  she  hath  done.  She 
hath  anointed  My  body  beforehand  for  My  burial." 

"For  My  burial!"  Mary  realized  then  the  truth  which 
Jesus  had  already  three  times  revealed  without  being  un- 

toria  naturalis,  xii.  26),  deriving  it  from  the  root  it'kttis.  Modern  schol- 
ars refer  it  to  the  verb  wivta,  and  render  it  as  "liquid,  drinkable."  In  feet 
Atheneus  (xv.  39)  informs  us  that  the  ancients  had  perfumes  which  they 
used  as  beverages,  among  others  essence  of  rose,  myrrh  and  spikenard. 

1  About  $57.00  in  our  money. 

2  'E/3d<rTafei',  he  carried  with  him  —  diverted  to  his  own  uses  —  the 
money  turned  into  his  purse.  BacTajw  certainly  has  this  meaning,  which 
is  the  one  suggested  by  the  context,  and  therefore  adopted  by  numerous 
commentators.  The  translation  in  the  Vulgate,  "portabat,"  (John  xii.  6) 
seems  to  make  the  word  tautological. 

3  Matt.  xxvi.  8-13  ;  Mark  xiv.  4-9. 


160      THIRD    YEAR  OF  THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS 

derstood.  More  detached  from  the  world  than  the  Apos- 
tles, and  faithfully 'meditating  upon  the  word  of  (Jod,  she 
had  had,  all  along,  a  foreboding  of  the  Saviour's  end,  and 
fearing  that  after  the  execution  His  blood-stained  body 
might  be  left  without  honors,  "she  poured  balm  upon  Him 
beforehand." x  Jesus  bade  His  disciples  everywhere  publish 
Mary's  deed. 

"  Of  a  truth,  I  say  to  you  wherever  the  Gospel  shall  be 
preached  in  the  whole  world,  that  which  she  has  now  done 
shall  be  told  in  memory  of  her." 

1  Hpoi\a(3ei>  fivplaai  (Mark  xiv.  8). 


BOOK    SIXTH. 


HOLY  WEEK, 


VOL.    II.  — 11 


RATA    MAPKON. 
&'.  i*,  gp'. 

*0  8e  €crtw7ra,  kcu  ovk  a.7reKpu>aT0  ovhev. 
IlaAtv  6   dp^tepei'5   iTrypwra    olvtov  kclI  Aeyei  avrw, 
2u  ei  'O  XPI2T02,  'O  'YI02  TOY  'EYAOrHTOY; 
O  be  Irjcroi's  ei7rej/,   Eyco  ei/xi,  ... 


lji£  Ccgtimcmp  of  IjHmgelf, 


i?w£  He  held  His  peace,  and  answered  nothing. 
Again  the  High-Priest  asked  Him,  and  said  to  Him :  — 
"Art    thou    THE    CHRIST,    THE    SON  OF  THE 
BLESSED   GOD?" 

And  Jesus  said  to  him  :  "  I  am,  .  .  ." 


SAINT  MARK. 
xiv.  61,  62. 


13006    ^tJCty 
HOLY    WEEK. 


CHAPTER   I. 

THE  TRIUMPH   OF  JESUS. 

I.    The  Entey  of  Jesus  into  Jerusalem. 

John  xi.  55-57,  xii.  12-19  ;  Mark  xi.  1-11  ;  Luke  xix.  29-44,  xxi.  37-38  ; 
Matt.  xxi.  1-11. 

The  Sanhedrin  Councillors  had  indeed  compelled  Jesus 
to  fly  from  the  Holy  City,  but  they  had  not  been  able  to 
blot  out  either  the  memory  of  His  prodigies,  or  the  author- 
ity of  His  language,  or  His  Name  now  famous  throughout 
the  length  and  breadth  of  Judea.  While  the  Lord  retired 
to  spend  His  last  few  days  in  the  Desert  of  Ephrem,  very 
many  Jews  had  gone  up  to  the  Temple  in  order  to  purify 
themselves  before  the  Passover,  and  ever  since  their  arrival 
they  had  been  on  the  look-out  for  Jesus.1  Their  disap- 
pointment was  lively  on  learning  that  He  was  no  longer 
to  be  seen  in  Jerusalem,  and  that  no  one  knew  where  He 
was. 

In  the  porches,  where  the  numerous  ablutions  and  sacri- 
fices necessitated  long  hours  of  standing  about  for  these 
crowds  of  visitors,  the  only  topic  of  discussion  was  the 
young  Prophet. 

1  John  xi.  55-57. 


1C4  HOLY   WEEK. 

"  What  do  you  think  ? "  they  asked  among  themselves ; 
"  is  it  really  true  that  He  will  not  come  ? " 

The  Councillors  could  overhear  them  speaking  such 
words,  could  note  the  agitation  of  the  first  comers,  and  so 
must  have  congratulated  themselves  for  having  avoided 
the  disturbances  with  which  the  Festival  was  threatened, 
by  thus  getting  rid  of  Jesus. 

Their  satisfaction  was  destined  to  be  of  short  duration  ; 
for  just  six  days  before  the  Pasch  news  reached  their  ears 
that  the  Saviour  was  approaching.  The  Sabbath  prevented 
the  people  from  hurrying  out  immediately  from  the  town, 
but  as  soon  as  sunset  signalled  the  end  of  the  hallowed  re- 
pose, many  went  out  as  far  as  Bethany.  "  They  went  thither, 
not  only  for  the  sake  of  Jesus,  but  for  Lazarus  also," 1  bent 
upon  seeing  this  man  once  dead  but  now  called  back  from 
the  tomb.  They  gazed  at  him,  were  thrilled  at  the  thought, 
and,  finally,  overborne  by  the  power  of  Jesus'  words,  great 
numbers  reentered  Jerusalem,  that  same  night,  believing  in 
the  Saviour.  Now  among  them  were  certain  princes  of  the 
people,  a  fact  which  was  exceedingly  irritating  to  the  ex- 
cited members  of  the  Sanhedrin.2  The  Pontiffs  especially, 
Sadducees  for  the  most  part,  with  no  belief  in  the  Resur- 
rection of  the  dead,  were  indignant  that  these  nobles  should 
be  the  cause  of  such  a  commotion.  To  their  way  of  think- 
ing, there  was  only  one  means  of  putting  an  end  to  the 
thing,  and  that  was  to  kill  the  resuscitated  man ;  this  they 
resolved  to  do.  But  other  cares  weighed  upon  their  minds, 
for  now  the  rumor  came  (as  already  noised  about  in  Beth- 
any) that  on  the  following  day  Jesus  would  enter  the  town. 
This  news  stirred  up  the  entire  populace,  and  all  were 
making  preparations  to  receive  the  Lord. 

And  accordingly,  on  the  morrow,  Jesus  quitted  the  home 
of  His  friends  to  make  His  way  Jerusalemward.  He  did 
not  follow  the  usual  high-road  for  caravans,  but  took  the 
foot-path,  which  crosses  over  the  ridge  connecting  the 
Mount  of  Olives  with  Bethany.3     On  passing  out  from 

i  John  xii.  9-11.  2  John  xii.  42. 

8  Upon  this  footpath  Frere  Lievin  <le  lfnmme  in  1877  discovered  a  four- 
square stone  hewn  from  the  rock  and  covered  with  paintings.     This  nionu- 


THE  ENTRY  OF  JESUS  INTO  JERUSALEM.       165 

under  the  lung  rows  of  palm-trees  which  shade  the  village 
streets,1  there,  just  a  little  to  His  right,  among  the  stony 
fields  planted  here  and  there  with  fig-trees,  the  Saviour 
came  in  sight  of  Bethphage  (The  House  of  Figs) 2  sur- 
rounded by  vineyards  bearing  a  plentiful  load  of  fruit. 

Bringing  the  company  about  Him  to  a  halt,  Jesus  sent 
two  disciples  on  ahead. 

"  Go  into  yonder  village  lying  before  us,"  He  said.3 
"  Upon  your  entrance  you  shall  fiud  an  ass  tied,  and  a  colt 
with  her,  on  which  no  man  has  ever  yet  mounted.  Loose 
them  and  bring  them  to  Me.  And  if  any  one  say  to  you, 
'What  are  you  doing?'  say,  'The  Lord  has  need  of  them,' 
and  straightway  he  will  let  them  go."  4 

Everything  took  place  as  Jesus  had  foretold  them :  in  a 
byway5  of  the  town  they  found  a  she-ass,  tied  with  her 
foal  outside  a  gateway ;  and  they  unfastened  them. 

"  What  are  you  doing  ? "  inquired  some  of  the  bystand- 
ers ;  whereupon  they  made  answer  just  as  tlie  Lord  had 
commanded  them,  and  they  let  them  go. 

The  Apostles  were  impatiently  awaiting   their  return ; 

ment,  dating  back  to  the  period  of  the  Crusades,  has  an  inscription  hearing 
the  name  of  Bethphage,  with  frescos  representing  the  resurrection  of  Laza- 
rus, and  one  of  the  Apostles  being  sent  into  the  village.  From  all  ap- 
pearances this  was  the  spot  where  Jesus'  mounted  the  ass's  foal.  This 
discovery  is  important,  since  it  shows  what  was  the  traditional  locality  of 
Bethphage  during  the  Middle  Ages  (see  La  Pierre  de  Bethphage,  par  Cler- 
mont-Ganneau.     Didier). 

1  Luke  xix.  29-33.  The  name  Bethany  —  such  at  least  is  the  opinion 
of  Eeland  and  Lightfoot  —  comes  from  the  Hebrew  ,J,ri  JVS,  Beth  Hine, 
"The  House  of  Dates"  (Stanley,  Sinai  and  Palestine,  p.  186).  It  is 
unnecessary  to  add  that  to-day  the  palm-trees  of  Bethany,  like  those  of 
Jerusalem,  exist  only  in  records  of  the  past. 

-Bethphage,    N33  IV  3,    "  The  House  of  Green  Figs." 

3  Matt.  xxi.  2. 

4  In  S.  Mark  the  MSS.  of  Sinai,  the  Vatican,  and  Beza  add  the  word 
ird\iv  to  airoffreWet,  which  allows  of  our  construing  this  passage  with 
Origen  (Comment,  in  Malt.  xvi.  16):  "The  Lord  has  need  thereof  and 
will  straightway  return  it  to  you."  However,  it  seems  more  natural  to 
translate  it  as  it  is  usually  given  :  "And  their  master  will  let-  them  go." 
The  Vulgate  renders  the  passage  in  this  form,  and  the  conclusion  of  the 
narrative  justifies  such  a  construction  :  nai  atprjKav  avrovs. 

5'A,u0x5oi>  (Mark  xi.  4)  signifies,  not  the  meeting  of  two  roads,  "  bi- 
vium  "  (Vulgate),  but  a  road  which  turns  round  about  some  house  or 
village. 


166  HOLY    WEEK. 

since  now,  for  the  first  time,  they  beheld  the  Master  mak- 
ing ready  something  which  might  be  likened  to  a  Triumph, 
by  preparing  to  mount  the  very  animal  of  old  devoted  to 
the  service  of  the  Royal  House  of  Israel,  the  ass  of  Eastern 
lands,  of  solemn  gait  and  noble  carriage.1  Jewish  tradi- 
tions had  proclaimed  that  the  Messiah  would  choose  no 
other  equipage2  on  the  day  of  His  manifestation. 

"  And  so,"  thought  they,  "  at  last  the  hour  has  come 
when  the  Master,  after  so  long  persisting  in  concealing 
Himself,  will  appear  and  establish  His  kingdom." 

The  delight  and  enthusiasm  of  the  Galileans  was  so  great 
that  they  tore  off  their  mantles3  and  with  them  decked 
the  ass  as  richly  as  they  might ;  then  making  Jesus  sit 
thereon,  they  thronged  about  Him  with  shouts  of  great  joy. 
"They  knew  not,"  adds  Saint  John,4  "the  Mystery  con- 
tained in  that  which  they  were  doing,  but  after  Jesus  was 
glorified,  then  they  remembered  that  all  these  things  had 
been  written  of  Him,  and  that  they  had  fulfilled  them." 
For  it  was  long  ago  recorded,  in  the  words  of  Zachary  :5  — 

"  Eejoice  greatly,  thou  daughter  of  Sion  !  Lift  up  a  shout 
of  gladness,  0  daughter  of  Jerusalem  !  Behold  thy  King 
cometh  to  thee  :  lowly  and  gentle,  He  bringeth  thee  salva- 
tion ;  poor,  He  rideth  upon  an  ass  and  upon  an  ass's  colt.6" 

1  The  ass  of  Oriental  countries,  better  cared  tor  and  of  finer  breed  than 
any  we  have,  performs  the  most  important  services,  particularly  in  the 
mountains  of  Judea  (Gen.  xlix.  14:  xxii.  3;  Judges  v.  10;  2  Kings 
xiii.  29). 

2  "If  the  Israelites  are  faithful  to  the  Lord,"  said  the  Rabbis,  "the 
Messiah  will  come  upon  the  clouds  of  Heaven  ;  if  they  are  unfaithful  He 
will  come  mounted  upon  an  ass"  (Sanhedrin,  (oil.  98,  ] ).  This  tradition 
was  so  widely  known  that  Sapor  offered  tin;  Jews  a  horse  for  their  Mes- 
siah, whereupon  they  responded  haughtily  that  the  ass,  which  was  destined 
to  bear  Jehovah's  Anointed,  was  of  greater  value  than  all  the  coursers  of 
that  prince,  for  it  was  descended  from  those  noble  beasts  which  had  per- 
formed this  service  fin-  Moses  and  Abraham  (Sepp,  Lebem  Jesu,  1>.  v.  k. 
cxviii.).  The  Romans  made  this  belief  the  theme  of  discreditable  gihes, 
and  accused  .lews  and  Christians  alike  of  worshipping  an  ass's  head 
(Martigny,  Dictionnaire  des  A ui iquit€s  vitrei iennes  :  Calomnies). 

:i  Mark  xi.  7. 

4  John  xii.  16. 

■'  Matt.  xxi.  5  :  Zac.  ix.  9. 

'•The  passage  from  Zachary,  which  we  give  entire,  is  cited  freely  by 
SS.  Matthew  and  John.     The  latter  Evangelist  at  the  same  time  alludes  to 


THE  ENTRY  OF  JESUS  INTO  JERUSALEM.       167 

Meanwhile  the  retinue  was  advancing  toward  Jerusa- 
lem, —  Lazarus  and  the  Apostles  nearest  to  the  Lord's  side, 
while  the  ass  walked  slowly  alongside  her  foal.  The  multi- 
tude, hastening  out  from  Bethany,  shared  the  disciples'  wild 
transports.  Some  cast  their  garments  on  the  ground,  to 
beautify  the  road  before  Him;1  others,  stripping  the  fig  and 
the  olive2  trees  of  their  leafy  boughs,  covered  the  way  with 
green  branches : 3  all  vied  with  one  another  in  celebrating 
the  wondrous  deeds  of  the  Christ,  and  Lazarus  whom  He 
had  brought  back  alive  from  the  tomb. 

The  route  along  which  Jesus  was  advancing  climbs  over 
the  crest  of  the  Mount  of  Olives  and  speedily  reaches  its 
summit.  From  this  point  the  Holy  City  suddenly  rises 
in  full  view,  its  snowy  ramparts  towering  over  the  dark 
ravines.  Surprising  as  this  scene  is,  even  nowadays,  to 
the  traveller  who  climbs  up  this  way  from  the  Jordan,  the 
spectacle  was  still  more  thrilling  then,  when  in  gazing  upon 
Jerusalem  they  beheld  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  Oriental 
world.  Girdled  with  towers  and  battlements,  crowned  with 
palaces,  the  brilliant  town  reached  out  to  the  east  and  to 
the  west,  as  if  bent  upon   marshalling  all  her  splendors 

the  prediction  of  Isaiah  :    "Say  to  the  daughter  of  Sion  :  Your  Saviour 
cometh.     Lo,  He  beareth  with  Him  His  recompense"  (Is.  lxii.  11). 

1  Ta  ijj.&Tia,  "  the  abayeh,"  the  mantle  which  covers  the  tunic.  This 
token  of  great  respect  is  still  tendered  to  persons  of  note  in  the  East.  In 
1834  a  Mr.  Farrar,  English  Consul  at  Damascus,  witnessed  a  scene  in 
which  the  townsfolk  of  Bethlehem,  who  came  to  implore  his  mediation  in 
their  behalf,  spread  their  mantles  under  his  horse's  feet  (Kobinson,  Bibli- 
cal Researches,  vol.  i.,  p.  473). 

2  KXddovs  awb  rdbv  dfrdpwv  (Matt.  xxi.  8).  KXdSos,  in  classical  Greek, 
designates  those  olive  branches  intertwined  with  fillets  of  linen,  which  sup- 
pliants bore  before  them  (Herodotus,  vii.  19  ;  ^Eschylus,  Eumenides,  43  ; 
Supplices,  23  ;  Sophocles,  CEdipus  Rex,  3).  In  the  beautiful  prayers  of 
Palm  Sunday  the  Church  alludes  to  these  olive  branches.  "  Redemptori 
obviam  procedens  paluiarnm  atque  olivarum  ramos  vestigiis  ejus  turba 
substravit.  Palmarum  igitur  rami  de  mortis  principe  triumphos  expec- 
tant :  surculi  vero  olivarum  spiritualem  unctionem  advenisse  quodam 
modo  clamant." 

3  ?,Toif3a8as  means  the  strewing  of  branches  and  leaves  picked  from  the 
neighboring  trees,  according  to  one  of  the  various  readings  of  this  text  : 
iK  tGjv  dypwv  (MSS.  of  Sinai,  the  Vatican,  and  Ephrsem),  pulled  from  the 
trees  along  the  wayside,  according  to  the  commoner  reading  :  €K  t&v  5eV- 
dpuv  (Alexandrian  MS.,  Beza's  Codex,  Vulgate,  Syriac,  Coptic,  Armenian 
Versions). 


168  110LY    WEEK. 

before  the  beholder.  In  a  southerly  direction  especially, 
when  the  sunlight  would  bent  upon  the  white  marbles  and 
golden  root's  of  the  Temple,  the  dazzled  sight  was  unable  to 
endure  such  a  blaze  of  fire.1  So  soon  as  this  beloved 
vision  unrolled  itself  before  them,2  the  Apostles  burst 
forth  into  songs  of  triumph  : 3  — 

"Hosanna4  to  the  Son  of  David! 

Blessed  be  the  King  of  Israel, 

Who  cometh  in  the  JSTatne  of  the  Lord, 
and  blessed  be  the  Kingdom 

of  our  Father  David,  which  is  come  ! 
Hosanna,  peace,  glory 

in  the  highest  of  the  Heavens  ! " 

Amid  these  cries  of  gladness  Jesus  alone  was  silent. 
He  had  stopped  and  was  looking  down  upon  the  city 
wherein  He  was  about  to  die.  At  last  Sion  had  heaped 
up  the  full  measure  of  ungratefulness,  and  the  Saviour 
wept  aloud5  over  her. 

"If  thou  hadst  known,"  He  mourned,  "if  thou  hadst 
known  —  if  only  in  this  day  which  is  still  granted  thee  — 
that  which  might  bring  thee  Peace  !6     But  now  all  this  is 

1  Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  v.  5,  6. 

2  S.  Luke  indicates  that  it  was  at  the  point  where  the  road  descends 
Jerusalemwards  :  7rpos  ry  KaTafidaei  tou  6povs  twv  eXaiuv,  that  the  disciples 
raised  this  Sung  of  Victory  (Luke  xix.  37). 

8  Matt.  xxi.  9  ;  Luke  xix.  38  ;  Mark  xi.  10. 

4  Hosanna :  XJ  njTiyin  ;  from  Psalm  cxviii.  25,  translated  by  the 
Septuagint  as  <jQ><jov  5tj  :  "Save  us."  From  this  cry  the  Feast  of  the 
Tabernacles,  where  it  was  so  often  repeated,  took  the  name  of  Hosanna 
(Buxtorf,  Lexicon  Hebralcum,  $W).  It  was  from  the  ritual  of  this 
solemnity  that  the  disciples  borrowed  their  joyous  demonstrations,  the 
palms  which  they  were  waving  in  the  air,  and  the  stirring  acclamations 
taken  from  the  great  Hallel,  and  from  Psalm  cxviii.  in  particular :  — 

"Be  Thou  our  Saviour  (Hosanna  !),  0  Jehovah  ! 

Blessed  is  He  Who  cometh  in  the  Name  of  the  Lord  !  " 
6  Jesus    does   not    merely    shed    tears    as    formerly  at    Lazarus'   tomb  : 

tMicpvaev  (John  xi.  35)  ;  He  mourns  with  a  loud  voice  :  ticKavaev  (Luke 

xix.  41). 

6  The  word  is  used  doubtless  in  allusion  to  the  promise  contained  in 

the  name    of  Jerusalem,    D*?tf  XV,    "  Foundation  of  Peace  ;  "  a  promise 

made  of  no  avail,  because  of  the  infidelity  of  the  Jews. 


THE  ENTRY  OF  JESUS  INTO  JERUSALEM       169 

hidden  from  thine  eyes.  There  will  come  a  time  when 
thine  enemies  shall  compass  thee  about  with  trenches,  and 
shut  thee  up,  and  straiten  thee  on  every  side,1  and  shall 
destroy  thee  and  thy  children,  all  beaten  down  to  the 
ground  in  thy  midst,  and  they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  one 
stone  upon  another,  because  thou  hast  not  known  the 
time  wherein  God  hath  visited  thee." 

No  one  else  beside  Jesus  foresaw  this  catastrophe  at  that 
moment.  His  disciples  indeed  saw  Him  weeping,  they 
heard  His  predictions,  and  felt  a  momentary  thrill  of  dis- 
quiet, but  the  impression  was  effaced  shortly.  So  many 
times  had  the  Lord's  brow  grown  sad,  and  His  tears  had 
flowed  freely  before  them  so  often,  that  they  no  longer  felt 
much  amazement  at  this  spectacle  ! 

Meanwhile  joyous  acclamations,  reechoing  from  afar,  had 
published  on  every  hand  the  progress  of  the  Son  of  David. 
And  now,  from  the  houses  down  in  the  valley  and  from 
the  pilgrims'  tents,  pitched  in  every  available  spot  in  that 
neighborhood,  there  came  out  a  great  multitude  to  meet 
Him,  advancing,  having  all  palm-branches  in  their  hands. 
Then  straightway  the  two  great  companies  joined  forces 
and  together  descended  to  Jerusalem,  —  one  throng  going 
before  the  Master,  the  other  following  after,  all  waving 
their  green  branches  and  filling  the  air  with  Hosannas.2 

"  Hosanna ! "  they  cried,  while  at  every  step  the  con- 
course swelled  in  number ;  loud  plaudits,  shouts  of  praise, 
triumphal  chants,  nothing  was  wanting  which  could  lend 
majesty  to  this  long-looked-for  entry  of  their  King. 

Some  of  the  Pharisees  took  alarm  at  all  this.3  For  who 
would  be  able  to  set  any  bounds  to  this  emotion  of  the 

1  Forty  years  later  this  wall  of  which  Jesus  had  foretold  them  was 
built ;  it  was  not  the  circumvallation  ordinarily  raised  by  the  legionaries, 
with  ditches  and  palisades,  but  a  rampart  which  transformed  Jerusalem 
into  a  prison,  and,  a  little  later  again,  into  the  tomb  of  eleven  hundred 
thousand  Jews  surprised  within  its  confines  (Josephus,  Bclhim  Judaicwn, 
vi.  1,  1).  When  the  Roman  cohorts  withdrew  they  left  behind  them  a 
heap  of  ashes  where  once  was  the  Temple,  while  the  town  was  so  com- 
pletely razed  to  the  ground  that  the  Jews  themselves  were  scarcely  able  to 
trace  out  the  vestiges  of  former  days  amid  the  debris. 

2  John  xii.  12,  13  ;  Mark  xi.  9. 

3  Luke  xix.  39,  40. 


170  HOLY   WEEK. 

people  ?  Would  the  Eomans  look  with  a  favorable  eye 
upon  this  public  proclamation  of  a  Messiah,  Son  of  David, 
—  a  royally  which  certainly  promised  nothing  better  than 
new  and  interminable  seditions  ?  However,  as  they  dared 
venture  nothing  openly  against  these  crowds  now  enrap- 
tured with  great  joy,  they  only  managed  to  approach 
Jesus. 

"  Master,"  they  said,  "  restrain  your  disciples." 

"If  they  hold  their  peace,"  responded  Jesus,  "the  very 
stones  will  cry  out ! " 

Then  He  entered  into  the  city.    Here  all  was  excitement. 

"  Who  is  this  ? "  asked  some ;  and  those  around  them 
were  crying :  — 

"  'T  is  Jesus,  the  Prophet  of  Nazareth  ! " 1 

The  while  "  all  this  great  multitude  with  Him  gave  tes- 
timony that  He  it  was  Who  had  recalled  Lazarus  from  the 
grave  and  raised  him  from  the  dead.  It  was  for  this  that 
they  flocked  about  Him,  because  they  heard  that  He  had 
wrought  that  Miracle."  2 

Then  indeed  the  Pharisees  began  to  say  to  each  other,  — 

"  You  see,  we  are  gaining  nothing.  All  the  world  is 
running  after  him  ! " 

In  this  royal  state  the  Saviour  was  conducted  the  length 
of  Jerusalem  as  far  as  the  Mountain  of  the  Temple ;  there, 
doubtless,  the  great  procession  dispersed,  for  Jewish  cus- 
toms did  not  permit  pilgrims  to  approach  the  Sanctuary 
in  travelling  attire,  their  feet  stained  with  dust.3 

And  so,  entering  alone  into  the  House  of  God,  Jesus 
found  it  once  more  just  as  it  had  been  three  years  back. 
Again  avarice  and  greed  had  broken  the  bounds  of  respect; 
cages  of  doves,  herds  of  cattle  and  sheep,  tables  for  money- 
changers, these  all  blocked  up  the  porches,  stretching  along 
beneath  the  galleries  even  to  the  confines  of  The  Holy. 
Moreover,  just  at  this  moment  the  marketing  seemed  to 
wax  more  shrill  and  tumultuous  than  ever,  since  some- 
where about  the  tenth  day  of  Nisan  the  lamb  had  to  be 
selected,  so  that  every  one  was  hurrying  to  buy  the 
Paschal  victim. 

1  Matt.  xxi.  10,  11.  2  John  xii.  17-19.  3  Berachot,  ix.  5. 


THE  ENTRY  OF  JESUS  INTO  JERUSALEM.       171 

Jesus  "  scanned  it  all  and  on  all  sides."  -But  He  did 
nothing  further  on  this  day ;  for  evening  was  drawing  on, 
and  He  must  needs  make  haste  to  depart  from  the  city.1 
In  fact  the  Sanhedrin  people,  who  were  the  more  infu- 
riated at  losing  Him  as  they  saw  He  was  gaining  greater 
power  daily,  now  dogged  His  every  step.  Obliged  to 
smother  their  hatred  during  this  triumphal  day,  they 
looked  to  find  facilities  for  avenging  themselves  upon 
Him,  come  nightfall.  In  the  midst  of  the  sleeping  city 
nothing  could  be  easier  than  suddenly  to  seize  the  Naza- 
rene.  Jesus  foresaw  the  danger,  and  with  His  Apostles 
withdrew  in  the  direction  of  Bethany. 

Did  He  go  as  far  as  that  village  ?  We  fancy  not ;  for 
on  this  night  as  on  the  three  following  the  Saviour  would 
no  longer  have  been  safe  in  Lazarus'  house,  marked  out  as 
it  was  for  the  watchful  spies.  Wandering  over  the  lonely 
and  desolate  sides  of  the  Mount  of  Olives 2  He  made  His 
bed  upon  the  bare  ground,3  surrounded  by  His  disciples. 
According  to  His  own  words  the  Son  of  Man  had  no  longer 
"  where  to  lay  His  head." 

II.     Holy  Monday. 

Mark  xi.  12-19  ;  Matt.  xxi.  12-19  ;  Luke  xix.  45-48  ;  John  xii.  20-50. 

On  the  morrow,  during  the  early  dawn,  Jesus  left  the 
neighborhood  of  Bethany  ard  returned  with  His  disciples 
to  Jerusalem;4  in  that  out  of  the  way  region  He  had  not 

1  Mark  xi.  11.  Here  S.  Mark  notes  the  order  of  events  with  such  pre- 
cision as  to  leave  no  room  for  uncertainty.  From  his  account  we  find  that 
Jesus  cast  out  the  marketers  from  the  Temple  on  the  day  following  His 
entrance  into  Jerusalem  ;  that  is,  on  Holy  Monday.  It  was  on  the  morning 
of  this  same  day  that  He  cursed  the  tig-tree,  and  it  was  not  until  Tuesday 
that  His  disciples  saw  the'  tree  blasted  and  withering  away.  Following  his 
custom  S.  Matthew  relates  these  several  incidents  without  observing  the 
order  of  time. 

2  Luke  xxi.  37  ;  Mark  xi.  11 ;  Matt.  xxi.  17. 

3  Hv\icr8r)  iKei  (Matt.  xxi.  17).  H^XffeTO  els  to  8pos  (Luke  xxi.  37). 
AuAt'fouai  in  its  primitive  sense,  means  "to  lie  in  the  open  air"  (in  the 
av\j,  where  the  shepherd  and  his  Hock  slept  upon  the  ground)  ;  probably 
it  preserves  this  signification  in  the  two  passages  we  have  just  quoted. 

4  Matt.  xxi.  18. 


172  HOLY    WEEK. 

been  able  to  procure  even  the  little  food  He  required,  and 
now  He  felt  the  {mugs  of  hunger  on  the  road.  The  fields 
through  which  they  were  passing,  albeit  a  sorry  enough 
landscape  in  our  times,  were  then  covered  with  trees1,  espe- 
cially fig-trees,  which  bordered  the  highways.2  The  Sa- 
viour noticed  one  standing  alone3  fully  leaved-out;4  He 
stepped  nearer  and  looked  for  figs  5  on  its  branches,  but  in 
vain.     Then  said  the  Lord  :  — 

"  Henceforth  may  never  fruit  be  found  upon  thee ! " 
And  from  that  moment  the  fig-tree   began  to  wither 
away. 

Surely  a  strange  anathema  this,  if  we  consider  it  as 
merely  affecting  a  tree,  incapable  of  meriting  praise  or 
blame ;  but  a  terrible  judgment  for  the  hypocrites,  for 
whom  this  fig-tree  was  the  figure,  most  of  all  terrible  for 
the  Jewish  people  who,  while  boasting  of  their  laws  and 
their  ceremonies,  used  these  outward  signs  only  to  hide 
the  hollow  insincerity  of  their  righteousness.  This  death- 
blow is  the  only  one  dealt  by  the  Saviour's  merciful  hands ; 
indeed  it  was  only  wrung  from  his  heart  during  the  last 
days  of  His  stay  among  them  in  the  hope  of  striking  their 

1  Aifdpecn  Kal  napadeiijois  KeKoa/j-eua.  (Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  vi. 
1,  1.     Compare  Stanley,  Si  mil  ami  Palestine,  p.  121.) 

2  It  was  commonly  believed  in  olden  times  that  the  dust  from  the  high- 
way had  fertilizing  qualities  especially  good  for  tig-culture 

3  M.Lav  (Matt.  xxi.  19)  :  "imam  illo  loco"'  (Bengel,  Gnomon). 

4  Although  it  was  not  yet  the  season  for  figs  (Mark  xi.  13),  the  rich 
foliage  of  this  fig-tree  betokened  a  premature  crop,  for  this  tree  puts  forth 
its  fruit  before  it  is  well  leaved  out  (  Pliny,  Historin  naturalis,  xvi.  49).  1  u 
Palestine  the  lig-trees  bear  twice  :  the  early  green  figs  (biecourim),  which 
fall  from  the  tree  as  soon  as  they  arc  ripe,  about  the  month  of  .Tune,  and 
the  summer  figs  (karmouses),  which  ripen  two  months  later.  The  fig-tree 
of  the  Gospel,  having  a  warm  exposure,  was  therefore  further  advanced  than 
the  rest.  The  attention  of  Jesus  was  attracted  by  this  forwardness,  which, 
though  unusual,  was  in  no  wise  impossible,  for  around  Libanus,  where  the 
fruit  comes  to  maturity  a  month  later  than  in  the  south  of  Judea,  Thomson 
has  picked  green  figs  (luring  the  month  of  May  (  The  Land  and  the  Book, 
p.  349).  Hence,  in  order  to  understand  the  Evangelical  text,  it  is  not 
necessary  to  suppose  thai  Jesus  was  looking  for  that  late  fruit  which  re- 
mains on  the  tree  during  the  winter  and  ripens  in  the  spring,  nor  need 
we  translate  6  Ka.ipbs  ovk  fy  ctvkwv  (Mark  xi.  13)  by  :  "The  harvest  of  figs 
for  this  year  was  not  good." 

5  Every  traveller  had  the  right  to  satisfy  his  hunger  by  plucking  and 
eating  any  fruit  hanging  over  the  roadside  (Deut.  xiii.  24). 


IN  THE   TEMPLE.  173 

stubborn  souls  with  a  holy  fear  of  God ;  and  even  here  the 
tender  mercies  of  His  heart  warded  off  the  blow,  moving 
Him  still  to  spare  mankind,  and  in  their  stead  simply 
sacrifice  an  insensible  object  of  His  own  handiwork. 

The  Master  hardly  halted  long  enough  to  launch  this 
malediction,  for  a  pressing  duty  was  urging  Him  onward  to 
Jerusalem.  Sorely  indignant  at  the  profanations  which  on 
the  evening  before  had  met  His  sight,  He  had  resolved  to 
once  more  raise  His  arm  in  judgment  against  those  who 
had  polluted  the  Temple.  Although  it  was  an  early  hour 
in  the  morning  He  found  the  courts  already  crowded  with 
traffickers  and  littered  over  with  beasts.1  Doubtless  with 
blows  from  a  thong,  as  He  had  done  once  before,2  so  on  this 
occasion  did  He  beat  the  buyers  and  sellers  before  Him, 
overiurning  the  money-tables,  together  with  the  stands  of 
the  dove-venders. 

"  It  is  written,  '  My  House  is  a  House  of  Prayer,' "  He 
cried,  "and  you  have  made  it  a  den  of  thieves  !"3 

Trembling  before  Him  they  all  took  to  flight;  soon 
Jesus  remained  sole  master  in  the  Sanctuary  He  had  puri- 
fied. "  Nor  would  He  so  much  as  suffer  a  man  to  pass 
through  the  Temple  with  an  unhallowed  vessel."4  Then, 
while  those  Jews  He  had  just  now  expelled  made  shift  to 
conceal  their  confusion  in  the  outskirts  of  the  Temple,  the 
blind  folk  and  cripples  came  hurrying  to  Him  and  He 
healed  them.  The  multitude  flocked  about  Him  to  hear 
His  words,  and  were  filled  with  wondering  delight.5 

A  few  moments  had  sufficed  to  change  the  aspect  of 
God's  Holy  Hill ;  whereupon,  in  place  of  the  noisy  tumult, 

1  Matt.  xxi.  12,  13. 

2  John  ii.  15. 

3  It  behoves  us  to  notice  that  here  Jesus  is  acting  as  the  Son  of  His 
Father  in  Heaven,  and  with  the  word  of  God  upon  His  lips.  "My  House 
is  a  House  of  Prayer,"  He  says,  borrowing  from  Isaiah  language  uttered  by 
Jehovah  Himself  (Is.  lvi.  7).  Then,  as  Jeremy  had  done,  He  reproaches 
the  Jews  for  having,  by  their  unrighteous  trafficking,  turned  the  Holy 
Place  into  a  robbers'  den  :  "Is  this  My  abode  hecome  a  cavern  for  brig- 
ands, this  dwelling  where  My  Name  hath  been  invoked  1  I  am  He  Who 
truly  liveth  ;  I  have  beheld  you,  saith  the  Lord"  (Jeremy  vii.  11). 

*Markxi.  16. 

5  Matt.  xxi.  14  ;  Mark  xi.  17,  18. 


174  HOLY   WEEK. 

there  fell  a  great  calm,  like  the  spirit  of  recollection,  over 
the  courts.  Even  the  children  about  the  Temple  were 
awe-stricken  at  the  stillness ;  but  then,  recalling  last  night's 
Triumph,  forthwith  they  began  to  reenact  the  victorious 
chants  which  had  then  greeted  the  Christ. 

"  Hosanna ! "  sang  those  little  voices,  "  Hosanna  to  the 
Son  of  David!"1 

Their  childish  homage  angered  the  enemies  of  the  Lord ; 
they  were  all  there,  High-Priests,  Scribes,  and  Chief-Magis- 
trates of  the  people,  all  watching  Him  with  envious  looks. 
At  sight  of  these  young  servants  of  God,  brought  up  by 
them,2  and  now  hymning  the  praises  of  the  Nazarene,  they 
could  contain  themselves  no  longer. 

"  Do  you  hear  what  these  are  saying  ? "  they  cried. 

"  Ay,"  replied  the  Master,  "  have  you  never  read,  '  Out 
of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  sucklings  Thou  hast  brought 
forth  a  perfect  praise '  ? " 

After  this  manner  Jesus  passed  the  clay  wherein,  ful- 
filling Malachy's  prediction,3  He  had  appeared  in  the  Tem- 
ple, therein  to  exercise  dominion.  Struck  with  what  they 
had  seen  and  heard,  certain  Greeks,4  who  at  this  time  hap- 
pened to  be  in  the  Gentiles'  porches,  approached  Philip 
and  made  this  request :  — 

"  Sir,  we  desire  to  see  Jesus."  5 

1  Matt.  xxi.  15,  16. 

2  The  priests  brought  up  children,  who  lived  in  the  Temple  and  were 
destined  for  service  about  the  altars,  or  for  the  sacred  music  (1  Kings  i.  24- 
28  ;  Sepp,  Leben  Jesu,  b.  v.  k.  cxxii. ). 

8  Mai.  iii.  1. 

*  John  xii.  20-36.  "EX\Vves,  Greeks,  and  consequently  Gentiles  (Acts 
xvi.  1  ;  John  vii.  35),  not  the  'EXX^ktto/,  who  were  Jews  speaking  the 
Greek  tongue.     In  the  Syriac  Version  they  are  called  Arameans. 

*»  S.  John  does  not  note  at  what  time  the  interview  which  Jesns  held 
with  the  Greeks  took  place.  It  is  true  he  says  that  Jesus  concealed  Him- 
sell  immediately  afterwards:  'E/tptfjSij  (John  xii.  36)  ;  but  this  can  apply 
equally  to  every  day  during  this  week,  for,  each  evening,  the  Master  was 
obliged  to  leave  the  town  to  conceal  Himself  from  His  enemies.  Hence 
we  are  reduced  to  conjectures,  and  of  such  the  most  probable  is  that  their 
meeting  occurred  on  the  evening  of  Holy  Monday,  for  first  (1\  on  Sunday, 
as  we  know  from  S.  Mark's  account  (xi.  11),  Jesus  merely  observed  every- 
thing about  the  Temple,  and  withdrew,  because  it  was  evening  ;  (2)  Tues- 
day was  a  day  of  conflict  with  the  Sanhedrin-Councillors,  a  gloomy  and 
troublous  time,  wherein  the  Master  no  longer  appeared,  as  upon  the  pre- 


IN  THE   TEMPLE.  175 

Where  did  these  men  hail  from,  and  what  did  they  want 
of  the  Lord  ?  There  is  a  tradition  which  represents  them 
as  envoys  from  Abgar  V.,  king  of  Edessa,1  who  had  lately 
been  notified  of  the  perils  besetting  Jesus  in  Judea,  and 
desired  to  tender  Him  an  asylum  in  his  States ;  the  Lord, 
they  tell  us,  recompensed  this  prince  by  healing  him  of  his 
leprosy,  and  sent  him  a  message  which  is  still  to  be  found 
in  the  Annals  of  Armenia.  Uncertain  as  these  facts  seem, 
it  is  right  to  recall  them  here,  for  they  show  at  least  that 
antiquity  regarded  these  strangers  as  Pagans,  come  from  a 
far-away  country. 

As  Philip,  whose  Greek  name  had  attracted  their  atten- 
tion, did  not  feel  sure  how  to  proceed  in  the  matter,  he 
addressed  Andrew,  who  was  from  Bethsaida  like  himself; 
the  latter,  who  was  of  hardier  character,  bade  him  accom- 
pany him  to  the  Saviour,  and  so  together  they  repeated 
the  demand  of  these  unknown  foreigners. 

Evidently  the  Master  had  expected  the  coming  of  these 
Gentiles,  for  He  answered  immediately,  — 

"  The  hour  is  come  wherein  the  Son  of  Man  is  about  to 
be  glorified."  2 

Thus  He  indicated  that  His  Realm  was  soon  to  be  ex- 
tended over  the  whole  earth,  and  at  the  same  time  testi- 
fied to  His  own  great  joy  thereat.  But,  foreseeing  also  at 
what  cost  this  conquest  must  be  bought,  He  felt  rising 
within  His  soul  the  horror  of  death.  His  fast  approaching 
Passion  now  appalled  Him. 

"  Now  is  My  Soul  troubled.  What  shall  I  say  ? "  3  He 
cried,  as  though  uncertain  of  Himself,  and  in  His  anguish 
of  spirit  He  besought  Heaven  to  deliver  Him. 

ceding  day,  surrounded  with  all  the  prestige  of  authority  which  had  first 
struck  the  Gentiles  and  attracted  them  to  Him  ;  (3)  finally,  during  Wednes- 
day, according  to  all  appearances,  Jesus  did  not  go  up  to  Jerusalem. 

1  Eusehius  has  preserved  this  letter,  which  he  took  from  several  Syriac 
writers  (Historia  Ecclesinstica,  i.  13),  and  we  also  find  it  quoted  by  Moses 
of  Khoren  (Hist.  Arm.,  ii.  28).  However  time-honored  and  weighty  the  tes- 
timony of  these  two  authors  may  be,  yet  it  does  not  suffice  to  establish  the 
authenticity  of  a  document  rejected  as  apocryphal  by  the  Church  (see 
Danko,  Historia  Revdationis  Divince  Novi  Testamenti,  par.  58). 

2  John  xii.  23. 

8  John  xii.  27,  28. 


17(3  HOLY   WEEK. 

"  Father,  save  Me  from  this  hour !" 

Yet  at  once,  crushing  down  the  weakness  of  the 
flesh,  — 

"  Nevertheless,"  He  added,  "  I  came  for  this  hour. 
Father,  glorify  Thy  Name." 

Straightway  a  Voice  came  from  on  High  that  said  :  — 

"  I  have  glorified  It  and  I  will  glorify  It  again." 

It  was  the  Father,  Who  celebrated  the  triumph  of  His 
Son  beforehand  and  did  honor  to  Him,  as  formerly  in  the 
Jordan  and  again  upon  Mount  Tabor. 

This  evidence  of  His  Godhead  was  not  comprehended 
then. 

"  'T  was  thunder  ! "  cried  the  crowds,1  though  others 
added : — 

"  An  Angel  spoke  to  Him." 

"  This  Voice  is  not  for  Me,  but  for  you,"  Jesus 
replied. 

And  He  explained  the  mystery  it  foreshadowed :  inas- 
much as  the  world  is  judged  and  convicted  of  its  sins  by 
the  Holy  Spirit,  Satan,  the  Prince  of  the  World,2  shall 
shortly  be  cast  out.  But  as  for  the  Christ,  He  shall  be 
lifted  up,3  like  the  Serpent  in  the  wilderness ;  and  then 
only  shall  He  draw  all  men  unto  Him.  "  Now  He  said 
this  to  declare  by  what  death  He  must  die." 

These  lessons  were  far  above  the  thoughts  of  the  crowd ; 
accordingly  they  would  not  hearken  longer,  but  began  to 
besiege  the  Master  with  questions.  What  did  He  mean 
by  saying,  "  It  is  necessary  that  the  Son  of  Man  be  lifted 
above  the  earth  ? "  Did  this  signify  the  death  of  the 
cross  ?  But  then  how  could  He  call  Himself  the  Son  of 
Man,  since  this  name  was  a  title   of  the   Messiah,  and 

1  John  xii.  29-33. 

2  "  The  Prince  of  these  times,"  as  S.  Paul  says  (2  Cor.  iv.  4) ;  that  is, 
Satan,  the  DStyn  *l#   of  the  Jews. 

8  Num.  xxi.  9.  As  He  is  here  speaking  to  Jews,  the  Saviour  makes  use 
of  the  expression  ^PI  "to  lift  up,"  which  in  the  Aramean  tongue  had 
the  special  signification  of  "to  crucify;"  whence  they  took  their  word 
KS'pT,  meaning  a  Cross  in  that  language.  Hence  the  Jews  could  not 
have  misunderstood  the  meaning  of  this  Prophecy. 


HOLY   MONDAY.  177 

surely  the  Psalmist  had  proclaimed  that  the  Eeign  of  the 
Christ  should  be  eternal  ? 1 

Without  entering  into  any  long  disputes  Jesus  reminded 
His  auditors  that,  for  yet  a  little  while,  they  had  the  light 
among  them. 

"  Believe  in  the  Light,"  He  added,  "  while  still  you  pos- 
sess it,  in  order  that  you  may  be  the  children  of  light."  2 

These  were  the  words  Jesus  then  spoke  to  the  people, 
but  what  occurred  afterward  between  Him  and  the  Greeks  ? 
Saint  John  does  not  inform  us ;  he  is  content  to  tell  us 
simply  that  these  visitors  "  were  come  up  to  worship  at 
the  Feast."  A  Heaven-sprung  light,  like  that  which  had 
once  illumined  the  minds  of  the  Magi,  at  first  had  re- 
vealed to  the  new-comers  the  excellence  of  the  Jewish 
Law ;  but  once  arrived  in  Jerusalem  they  could  find 
therein  nothing  greater  than  Jesus,  and,  in  all  simplicity 
and  singleness  of  heart,  they  turned  to  Him.  The  Eastern 
world  had  knelt  and  adored  Him  in  His  cradle ;  now  the 
West,  in  the  person'  of  these  Greeks,  came  to  bow  down 
and  worship  before  His  Cross. 

The  interview  between  Jesus  and  the  Gentiles  is  the 
last  incident  of  the  Divine  Ministry  recounted  by  Saint 
John.  In  closing  his  account  of  this  period  he  stops  to 
cast  one  sad  backward  glance  at  the  scanty  harvest  which 
the  Master  had  gathered  as  the  fruit  of  all  His  mighty 
labors.3  His  teaching,  it  is  true,  had  compelled  the  ad- 
miration of  many ;  even  here  and  now  His  words  could 
hold  the  multitude  spell-bound,  howbeit,  without  working 
their  conversion.  Isaiah's  Oracle4  was  accomplished:  for 
three  full  years  Israel  had  now  looked  upon  the  Messiah 
without  recoonizincr  Him,  had  hearkened  without  under- 
standing,  all  the  time  hardening  its  heart,  so  that  it  could 
be  neither  healed  nor  be  turned  unto  Him. 

1  "  By  My  thrice  Holy  Name  have  I  sworn  it : 
I  will  not  lie  unto  David  ; 
his  seed  shall  be  everlasting, 
and  his  Throne  shall  endure  before  Me 
even  as  long  as  the  Sun." 

(Ps.  lxxxix.  accd'g  Hebr.  36,  37.) 

2  John  xii.  36.  3  John  xii.  37-48.  4  Is.  vi.  9. 

TOL.  II.  — 12 


178  HOLY   WEEK. 

"  Truly  this  was  what  the  Prophet  had  predicted  when, 
after  having  beheld  the  glory  of  the  Christ,  he  spoke  those 
words  concerning  Him."  Amid  this  universal  blindness  a 
few  princes  of  the  people  believed  in  Jesus,  but  even  these 
durst  not  avow  their  faith  for  fear  of  being  expelled  from 
the  Synagogue.1  Repeating  the  Evangelist's  reproachful 
words,  "  the  glory  of  men  was  dearer  to  them  than  the 
glory  of  God." 

1  Nevertheless  all  might  have  known  the  truth,  for  Jesus  had  cried  it  in 
their  ears  and  upon  the  housetops  (John  xii.  44).  John,  when  at  chapter 
xi.  he  brings  to  a  close  his  recital  of  the  Saviour's  public  life,  proceeds  to 
recall  some  of  those  words  which  should  carry  conviction  to  all  minds: 
"Whoso  believeth  in  Me  believeth  not  in  Me  but  in  Him  Who  sent  Me  ; 
and  he  that  seeth  Me  seeth  Him  that  sent  Me."  "  I  am  come  into  the 
world,  being  the  Light  thereof,  in  order  that  he  who  believeth  in  Me  may 
not  remain  in  darkness."  "And  if  anyone  hear  My  words  and  care  nought 
about  following  them,  1  judge  him  not,  for  I  am  not  come  to  judge  the 
world  but  to  save  the  world.  He  who  despiseth  Me  and  receiveth  not  My 
words,  hath  a  Judge  Who  will  judge  him  at  the  last  Day  :  because  I  have 
not  spoken  of  Myself,  but  My  Father,  Who  sent  Me,  hath  ordained  all  that 
which  I  have  had  to  say.  And  I  know  that  His  Commandment  is  Life 
Eternal.  That  which  I  say,  I  say  even  as  My  Father  sayeth  unto  Me" 
(John  xii.  44-50). 


CHAPTEE   II. 

THE  LAST  DAY  IN   THE  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 


I.  Jesus  and  the  Members  of  the  Sanhedrin.  — 
Parables  of  the  Vine-Dressers  and  the  Wed- 
ding-Festival. 

Mark  xi.  20-33,  xii.  1-12 ;  Matt.  xxi.  20-46,  xxii.  1-14  ;  Luke  xx.  1-19. 

The  following  morning,  after  spending  this  night,  like 
the  preceding  one,  without  the  city  walls,  Jesus  returned 
for  the  last  time  to  the  Temple.1  By  the  roadside  still 
stood  the  fig-tree  He  had  condemned  when  passing  that 
way  yesterday,  now  no  longer  arrayed  in  glistening  foliage, 
but  parched  and  dry,  blasted  to  the  root.  Peter  was  the 
first  to  notice  it. 

"  Master,"  lie  said,  "  look  yonder !  The  Fig-tree  which 
you  cursed  has  withered  away." 

The  suddenness  of  this  death  so  astonished  the  Apostles 
that  they  forgot  the  lesson  which  Jesus  had  drawn  from 
the  incident  the  clay  before,  preoccupied  as  they  were 
with  the  overwhelming  effects  of  His  lightest  word.  Ac- 
commodating Himself  to  their  thoughts,  the  Lord  now 
spoke  to  them  of  this  attribute  of  Omnipotence,  and  de- 
clared that  they  might  rightfully  assume  a  like  power. 

"  Of  a  truth,"  He  said,  "  if  you  have  faith  and  waver 
not  you  shall  not  only  cause  a  fig-tree  to  wither  away,  but 
you  shall  say  to  this  mountain,  '  Uproot  thyself,  and  cast 
thyself  into  the  sea  !'     Immediately  it  shall  be  done."2 

1  Mark  xi.  20-25. 

2  Matt.  xxi.  21,  22.  Jesus  had  already  used  this  figure  to  declare  the 
power  of  faith  (see  Vol.  II.  p.  33). 


180  HOLY   WEEK. 

The  Apostks,  who  had  been  so  amazed  at  the  wonder 
He  had  worked,  were  even  more  astounded  to  hear  Him 
say  that  they  might  do  as  much.  In  their  surprise  they 
stood  staring  at  the  Mount  of  Olives,  whither  the  Lord 
had  just  pointed,  their  minds  bewildered  at  the  notion 
of  stirring  so  huge  a  mass.  Jesus  pursued  His  thought 
further. 

"  All  things  which  you  shall  ask  in  prayer  do  but 
believe  and  you  shall  receive  them." 

Surely  this  was  to  give  the  soul  a  partnership  in  the 
Divine  Power.  But  the  faith  of  which  the  Master  is 
speaking  here  is  worthless  without  charity,  and  this  truth 
He  inculcated  by  adding  that  no  prayer  is  granted  which 
does  not  spring  from  love  and  forgiveness  of  injuries.1 

"  And  when  you  would  betake  yourselves  to  prayer, 
whatever  you  may  have  against  any  one  forgive  it  him,  in 
order  that  your  Father  Who  is  in  Heaven  may  also  par- 
don you  your  offences.  And  if  you  do  not  forgive  him 
neither  will  your  Father  Who  is  in  Heaven  pardon  you 
your  offences." 

Meanwhile,  conversing  in  this  manner,  they  had  passed 
under  the  gates  of  Jerusalem  and  ascended  to  the  Temple. 
The  crowds  had  not  yet  gathered  in  any  great  number. 
Walking  under  the  galleries  Jesus  was  beginning  His  in- 
structions to.  such  as  He  found  already  assembled  there, 
when  a  deputation  approached  him.2  It  included,  if  not 
the  whole  Sanhedrin,  at  least  representatives  from  its  va- 
rious divisions,  —  Pontiffs,  Scribes,  and  Ancients  of  the 
people.  Filled  with  wrath,  as  they  watched  the  Galilean's 
triumphant  reception  during  the  last  few  days,  they  now 
came  in  person  to  question  Him,  making  sure  that  their 
presence  would  overawe  the  multitude;  and  in  fact  the 
people  at  once  fell  to  one  side  at  their  approach. 

"  By  what  authority,"  they  demanded,  "  do  you  do  these 
things  ?  And  who  has  given  you  this  power  "  of  instruct- 
ing and  exercising  dominion  in  the  Temple  ? 

"  I  also  will  propose  a  question  to  you,"  said  Jesus,  "  and, 
if  you  answer  Me,  I  will  tell  you  by  what  authority  I  do 
»  Mark  xi.  25,  26.  2  Mark  xi.  27-33. 


JESUS  AND   THE  SANDHEDRIN-FACTION.      181 

these  things  ?  From  whom  was  the  Baptism  of  John  ? 
From  Heaven,  or  from  men  ? " 

The  Sanhedrin  delegation  was  disconcerted ;  for,  with  a 
word,  the  Saviour  had  reversed  their  respective  roles,  and 
obliged  His  judges  to  defend  themselves. 

"  Answer  Me,"  He  repeated. 

But  it  was  without  avail.  They  saw  only  too  well  just 
what  His  question  involved,  for  John  had  given  testimony 
in  the  presence  of  all  Judea  that  Jesus  the  Christ  was  still 
greater  than  he. 

"  If  we  say :  '  It  was  from  Heaven,' "  they  muttered 
among  themselves,  "  he  will  answer  us  :  '  Why  did  you  not 
believe  him  ? '  And  if  we  say  :  '  It  is  from  men,'  the  peo- 
ple will  stone  us."  Fur  all  regarded  John  as  a  true 
Prophet,  and  they  would  incur  great  danger  by  even  con- 
tradicting his  words ;  so  then,  dreading  any  uprising  of 
the  multitude,  the  Sauhedrin's  emissaries  were  forced  to 
acknowledge  their  defeat,  saying  :  — 

"  We  know  nothing  about  it."  1 

They  knew  nothing  about  it !  they,  the  masters  of  Israel, 
who  had  arrogated  to  themselves  the  right  of  expounding 
everything,  of  judging  all  things,  of  alone  being  able  to 
distinguish  the  inspired  Prophet  from  the  seducer  of  the 
people,  —  they  could  not  tell  what  this  man  was  whose 
voice  had  startled  Judea,  and  attracted  to  the  Jordan,  not 
only  the  ignorant  multitude,  but  the  Doctors  of  the  Law 
and  the  great  men  of  Jerusalem.  They  were  so  publicly 
put  to  confusion  that  Jesus  was  content  to  add  :  — 

"  No  more  will  I  tell  you  by  what  authority  I  do  these 
things;"  and  He  turned  away  from  them. 

After  having  thus  reduced  the  lawyers  and  doctors  to 
silence  Jesus  continued  to  teach  the  people.2 

"What  think  you  of  this?"  He  asked  them.  "A 
man  had  two  sons,  and  coming  to  the  first  he  said  to 
him :  — 

"  '  My  son,  go  work  to-day  in  my  vineyard.' 

"  '  I  will  not,'  he  answered ;  but  afterwards,  touched  with 
repentance,  he  went. 

l  Luke  XX,  3-7.  2  Matt.  xxi.  28-32. 


182  HOLY  WEEK. 

"  Coming  to  the  second,  he  spoke  to  him  in  the  same 
words. 

"  '  I  go,  Sir,'  this  one  answered,  and  went  not. 

"Which  of  the  two  did  the  will  of  his  father  ?" 

With  one  voice  the  crowd  exclaimed :  — 

"  The  first !  " 

Thereby  they  unwittingly  condemned  the  Sanhedrin 
party,  fur  it  was  to  them  that  Jesus  referred  under  the 
guise  of  this  son,  so  ready  with  his  lip-service,  —  too  insin- 
cere to  disobey  openly,  too  corrupt  either  to  will  or  to  do 
what  is  right.  Then  He  added  that  publicans  and  har- 
lots should  go  before  them  into  God's  Kingdom.  The  lat- 
ter indeed  were  converted  by  the  power  of  John's  words ; 
whereas  the  princes  of  the  people,  on  the  contrary,  "  had 
seen  all  that  perfectness  of  righteousness  which  is  of  the 
Law1  that  wTas  in  John,  yet  nothing  about  him  had  touched 
them  or  moved  them  to  believe." 

But  what  after  all  was  this  incredulity  when  compared 
with  the  crimes  which  they  were  even  now  meditating? 
In  order  to  display  its  blackness  Jesus  brought  forward  an- 
other Parable.2  He  described  one  of  the  vineyards  which 
then  covered  the  suburbs  of  Jerusalem.  This  one  the  mas- 
ter of  the  household  has  planted  with  his  own  hands,  has 
encircled  with  a  wall  and  bristling  shrubs3  whereby  to 
ward  off  the  wild  beasts ;  his  zealous  care  has  prompted 
him  to  have  a  tower4  built,  and  by  night  and  by  day  a 

1  "Ep  65<£  SiKaiocnjvrjs :  the  scrupulous  observance  of  the  Law,  the  "path 
of  righteousness,"  so  often  praised  in  the  Old  Testament  (Prov.  viii.  20  ; 
xii.  28  ;  xvi.  31,  etc.). 

2  Matt.  xxi.  33-46. 

8  Num.  xxii.  24  ;  Prov.  xxiv.  31  ;  Cant.  ii.  15  ;  Is.  v.  5.  The  hedge  is 
to  Temind  them  with  what  jealous  care  God  isolated  Israel  from  all  other 
peoples  :  He  was  "a  Wall  of  Fire"  unto  them,  using  Zachary's  expression 
(ii.  5),  and  never  neglected  anything  to  shield  them  from  the  idolatry  of 
Heathens.  Hence  the  great  number  of  prescriptions  laid  down  in  the  Law, 
and  so  many  warnings  from  the  Prophets  ;  hence  too  He  chose  out  that 
land  of  Judea,  with  its  peculiar  topographical  formation,  bounded  off  from 
the  rest  of  the  earth, — on  the  east  by  the  Jordan,  on  the  south  by  the 
desert,  on  the  west  by  the  sea,  on  the  north  by  Libanus. 

4  This  tower  served  as  a  shelter  for  the  watchmen,  and  enabled  them  to 
descry  from  a  distance  the  approach  of  bandits  or  wild  beasts.  In  Spain, 
in  Arabia,  and  in  Egypt,  the  coxintry-folk  still  keep  guard  over  their  har- 


PARABLE   OF   THE   VINE-DRESSERS.  183 

watchman  keeps  guard  from  this  height ;  a  huge  basin, 
hollowed  from  the  rock,  receives  the  wine  which  the  vine- 
dressers pour  in  purple  streams  from  the  press.1  Nothing 
is  wanting  to  complete  this  cherished  vineyard,  and  the 
Lord  may  well  demand  :  — 

"What  more  ought  I  to  have  done  that  I  have  not 
done  ? "  2 

And,  notwithstanding,  when  the  vintage  season  came  at 
last  it  was  of  no  avail  for  him  to  send  his  servants  the 
Prophets  to  warn  them  that  it  was  high  time 3  to  render 
some  fruits.  The  husbandmen  laid  hold  upon  these  Mes- 
sengers, beat  some,  slew  and  stoned*  the  rest.  Others  of 
his  retainers  sent  in  greater  numbers  suffered  the  same 
outrageous  treatment  at  their  hands. 

What  else  was  this  but  a  history  of  these  same  Jews,  of 
whom  Saint  Stephen  could  truly  say :  — 

"  Which  one  of  the  Prophets  have  not  your  fathers  per- 
secuted ?  They  have  massacred  them  which  proclaimed 
to  you  the  coming  of  the  Just  One,  of  Whom  you  have 
been  but  now  the  betrayers  and  murderers."  4 

The  rest  of  the  Parable  still  more  plainly  declared  what 
the  Sanhedrin  was  about  to  put  into  effect  only  three  days 
later. 

The  master  of  the  vineyard  had  an  only  son  whom  he 
loved  much.5 

"  What  shall  I  do  ? "  he  mused.     "  I  will  send  them  my 

vest  fields  in  this  way,  sometimes  climbing  into  high  trees,  sometimes  from 
some  artificial  hillock,  thus  keeping  off  the  flocks  of  birds  who  come  to 
thieve  the  grain. 

1  Atjvos,  "torcular"  (Matt.  xxi.  33),  called  more  exactly  by  S.  Mark 
(xii.  1)  \nro\-qviov,  "lacus,"  the  reservoir,  the  vat  which  was  often  hollowed 
out  of  the  rock  and  stood  below  the  wine-press.  The  grapes  thrown  into  it 
were  trampled  under  foot  by  the  vineyard  laborers,  and  the  juice  of  the 
fruit  flowed  into  the  reservoir  through  an  aperture  covered  by  a  grating. 

2  Is.  v.  4. 

3  This  season,  according  to  the  Law,  was  the  fifth  year  after  the  plant- 
ing. During  the  three  first  years  they  were  bade  to  circumcise  the  fruit, 
or,  in  other  words,  regard  them  as  impure  and  therefore  refrain  from 
touching  them.  The  fourth  year,  all  the  fruit  was  consecrated  to  the  Lord, 
and  upon  the  fifth  they  were  allowed  to  gather  the  harvest  (Lev.  xix. 
23-25). 

*  Acts  vii.  52. 
6  Luke  xx.  13-16. 


184  HOLY   WEEK. 

beloved  son ;  perchance  when  they  see  him  they  will  have 
respect  for  him." 

Then,  when  the  husbandmen  caught  sight  of  him,  they 
said  among  themselves :  — 

"  This  is  the  heir.  Come,  let  us  kill  him  and  the  inheri- 
tance will  be  ours  ! " 

And  laying  hold  on  him,  they  dragged  him  outside  the 
vineyard,1  and  there  they  killed  him. 

"  When,  therefore,  the  master  of  the  vineyard  shall  come 
what  will  he  do  to  these  vine-dressers  ? "  demanded 
Jesus,  and  He  looked  fixedly  at  these  members  of  the 
Sanhedrin. 

But  on  their  part  the  sole  thought  was  to  divert  the 
attention  of  the  multitude  from  themselves ;  accordingly, 
in  order  to  forestall  any  such  personal  application,  they 
stigmatized  the  crime  in  unmeasured  terms. 

"  He  will  punish  these  wicked  men  in  proportion  to 
their  wickedness,"  they  said;  "he  will  have  them  slain, 
and  let  out  his  vineyard  to  others."2 

"  God  forbid  !  "  3  cried  out  the  people,  who  comprehended 
that  this  Vineyard  was  Israel,4  and  now  heard  their  lead- 
ers launching  curses  upon  their  own  heads.  But  Jesus 
did  but  confirm  the  sentence  which  they  now  had  uttered 
against  themselves. 

According  to  the  Psalmist's  Prophecy5  the  Stone  at 
first  rejected  by  men  for  the  foundation  of  God's  Church 
was  thereafter  to  become  the  mighty  Basework  whereon 
Jews  and  Gentiles  should  together  erect  a  new  Edifice. 
This  Corner-stone  6  was  Jesus,  whose  humble  appearance 
had  made  Him  a  stumbling-block  to  these  masters  of 
Israel.     Woe  unto  them,  for  that  they  had  fallen  against 

1  To  the  gates  of  Jerusalem,  upon  Calvary. 

2  Matt.  xxi.  41. 

3  Luke  xx.  16. 

4  All  tins  imagery  of  the  Vineyard  was  so  often  employed  in  the  Holy 
Books  to  designate  Israel,  that  every  one  present  comprehended  the  full 
purport  of  the  allusion. 

6  Ps.  cxvii.  22. 

6  Kf^aX?)  ywvlas,  "The  Head  of  the  Corner"  (Matt.  xxi.  42);  ti'$.*\ 
or  fi5]T]3K. 


PARABLE   OF  THE    WEDDING-FEAST.  185 

this  Eock  of  Offence,  and  were  thereby  broken  in  pieces ! 
Yet,  even  now,  there  was  space  left  them  to  retrieve  their 
fall  and  rise  once  more;  whereas,  if  they  consummated 
their  crime,  the  Stone  would  crush  them,  grinding  them 
into  such  fine  chaff  that  the  lightest  wind  would  sweep 
them  from  off  the  threshing-floor.1 

"  The  Kingdom  of  God  shall  be  taken  away  from  you," 
said  the  Lord,  "  and  given  to  a  people  who  shall  bring 
forth  the  fruits  thereof,"  2 

These  last  words  of  the  Saviour  left  no  room  for  miscon- 
ception ;  "  the  princes  of  the  priesthood  and  the  Pharisees 
understood  that  He  was  speaking  of  them,  and  sought 
means  to  seize  Him ;  but  still  they  feared  the  people,  who 
regarded  Him  as  a  Prophet."  Thus  protected  from  their 
wrath,  Jesus  only  answered  them  by  forcing  them  to  hear 
what  should  be  the  result  of  their  plottings. 

To  this  end  He  went  on  to  repeat  an  illustration  which 
He  had  used  at  other  times,3  that  of  a  marriage-banquet 
which  the  guests  refuse  to  attend.4  But  since  the  day 
when  the  Lord  first  presented  this  picture  of  their  reproba- 
tion before  the  eyes  of  the  Jews  the  aspect  of  affairs  had 
altogether  altered  ;  the  hatred,  so  long  repressed,  had  broken 
its  bonds ;  the  Pharisees,  who  had  formerly  invited  the 
Christ  to  sit  at  table  with  them,  only  gathered  about  Him 
here  in  Jerusalem  in  the  hope  of  apprehending  Him  and 
putting  Him  to  death. 

These  deplorable  circumstances  are  all  reflected  in  the 
details  of  the  Second  Wedding  Feast.  For  this  time  the 
scene  is  one  of  imposing  richness ;  it  is  no  longer  a  private 

1  The  word  \iKfirj<ra.  (Luke  xx.  18),  which  means  "to  winnow,"  is  used 
in  allusion  to  that  passage  in  Daniel  where  the  Prophet  sees  a  little  stone 
detached  from  the  mountain  ;  and  this  shatters  in  pieces  the  statue,  which 
is  for  a  figure  of  Satan's  reign  on  earth  :  "Then  the  iron,  the  clay,  the 
brass,  the  silver,  and  the  gold  were  all  broken  together,  and  became  like  the 
fine  chaff  which  in  summer-time  the  winds  carry  from  off  the  threshing- 
floor ;  and  it  disappeared,  and  nought  of  it  was  thereafter  to  be  found  in 
any  place.  But  the  Stone  which  struck  the  statue  became  a  great  Mountain 
which  filled  the  whole  earth"  (Dan.  ii.  34,  35  ;  compare  Is.  xxviii.  16). 

2  Matt.  xxi.  43-46. 

3  It  was  some  three  months  earlier,  in  Perea  and  in  the  house  of  a 
Pharisee  who  invited  the  Lord  to  a  banquet  (Luke  xiv.  16-24). 

*  Matt.  xxii.  1-14. 


186  HOLY    WEEK. 

individual  who  Lids  them  to  a  dinner,  —  now  we  have  a 
king  celebrating  the  nuptials  of  his  son.  While  those  in- 
vited to  the  first  entertainment  excused  themselves  cour- 
teously, these  who  are  called  to  the  second  shamefully 
maltreat  the  servants  of  the  prince,  while  some  proceed  so 
far  as  to  scourge  and  kill  them.  Such  heinous  crimes  cry 
out  for  vengeance ;  accordingly,  while  only  excluded  from 
the  hanquet  in  the  first  Parable,  in  the  present  one  the 
guilty  ingrates  are  punished  rigorously.  The  king  "  de- 
spatches his  armies,  destroys  the  murderers,  and  sets  fire 
to  their  city."  A  threatening  Prophecy  indeed  ;  one,  alas  ' 
which  the  Jews  did  not  comprehend  even  when  Jerusalem 
lay  in  ashes  at  their  feet. 

Turning  away  from  these  reprobates,  Jesus  spoke  of  the 
other  guests  whom  the  Apostles,  His  servants,  were  soon 
to  usher  into  the  Church ;  for  He  had  commanded  them 
"  to  gather  in  all  that  they  should  find,  good  or  evil,"  1  in 
order  to  fill  up  the  banquet-hall.  But  it  would  not  be 
enough  for  a  man  to  have  been  called  to  the  feast-making 
with  Jesus  in  order  to  make  him  really  worthy  of  such 
high  honor.  Indeed  it  would  be  with  them  as  when  "  the 
king,  having  gone  in  to  see  the  guests,  perceives  a  man 
present  who  has  not  on  a  wedding-garment.2  Whereupon 
he  saith  to  him  :  — 

1  Though  Jesus  commands  them  to  bring  in  the  bad,  evidently  it  is  that 
He  may  render  them  good,  not  to  leave  them  as  they  are.  "  Foedam  ama- 
vit  ut  redderet  pulchraro  .  .  .  amavit  nos  prior  qui  semper  pulcher  est. 
Et  qualps  amavit  nisi  foedos  et  deformes  ?  Non  ideo  tamen  ut  foedos  di- 
mitteret,  sed  ut  mutaret,  et  ex  deformibus  pulchros  faceret"  (S.  Augustine, 
In  1  Epist.  Joannis,  ix.). 

2  Emblem  of  those  virtues  wherewith  the  soul  ought  to  be  arrayed  at  the 
Lord's  Banquet,  this  wedding  garment  recalled  the  lavish  generosity  of 
Oriental  monarchs.  They  delight,  upon  festal  days,  to  load  their  favorites 
with  gifts,  bestow  rich  apparel  upon  them  (Gen.  xli.  42  ;  xlv.  22  ;  1  Kings 
xviii.  4;  2  Kings  v.  5;  Esther  ii.  18  ;  Dan  v.  7),  and  demand  in  return 
that  they  appear  at  the  royal  feastmaking  arrayed  in  these  tokens  of  their 
sovereign's  munificence.  The  crime  of  the  guest  in  the  Parable  was  that 
he  scorned  the  robe  given  him  by  his  king,  and  appeared  before  him  clad 
in  mean  and  poor  guise,  unworthy  of  the  royal  majesty.  Hence  the  con- 
demnation of  this  profane  and  sacrilegious  man,  his  tears,  and  the  gnashing 
of  teeth  in  the  blackness  of  night,  which  for  him  shall  be  everlasting,  since 
he  is  cast  forth  bound  hand  and  foot,  with  no  hope  of  ever  coming  forth 
from  thence. 


CAESAR'S  DENARIUS.  187 

" '  Friend,  how  did  you  enter  here  without  having  put  on 
marriage  raiment  ? ' 

"And  lie  had  nothing  to  answer. 

"  Then  saith  he  to  his  servants  :  — 

" '  Bind  him  hand  and  foot,  and  cast  him  into  the  outer 
darkness ! ' 

"  There  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth." 

Jesus  could  add  nothing  to  this  Parable  but  that  one 
cry  of  warning  so  often  repeated  by  him  :  — 

"  Many  are  called,  but  few  chosen  ! " 

This  He  exclaimed  now,  no  longer  with  the  hope  of 
alarming  the  Jews,  but  thinking  more  of  His  disciples, 
since  even  in  their  ranks  and  at  His  Last  Supper  this 
saying  would  find  its  fulfilment. 

II.    Cesar's  Denaeius. 

Mark  xii.  13-17  ;  Matt.  xxii.  15-22  ;  Luke  xx.  20-26. 

The  Sanhedrin's  ambassage  had  not  lingered  to  hear  the 
end  of  this  Parable ;  they  had  withdrawn,  despairing  of 
conquering  the  Christ  by  their  own  efforts,  but  more  than 
ever  ardently  bent  upon  arraying  other  enemies  against 
Him.  They  proceeded  at  once  to  take  counsel,  and,  as 
their  fear  of  the  Nazarene  outweighed  every  other  feeling, 
they  decided  to  renew  the  alliance  heretofore  made  in 
Galilee,1  and  accordingly  courted  the  cooperation  of  such 
Herodians  as  they  encountered  in  the  Temple.2  Intense  as 
was  the  aversion  usually  shown  by  the  Pharisees  for  these 
courtiers  of  the  Eoman  power,  they  did  not  scruple  at 
this  juncture  to  make  them  the  instrument  of  their  wily 
designs. 

Now  the  plan  in  view  was  to  ask  Jesus  some  question 
the  answer  to  which,  however  it  might  be  stated,  should 
involve  His  ruin.  If  put  to  Him  by  the  Zealots  of  the 
Law  any  such  insidious  demand  would  be  likely  to  awaken 
the  suspicions  of  the  Christ,  and  by  this  time  His  foes 

1  See  Yol.  I.  p.  244.  2  Matt.  xxii.  15-22. 


188  HOLY  WEEK. 

knew  Him  well  enough  to  expect  that,  with  a  word,  He 
would  snap  the  snares  wherewith  they  wished  to  entangle 
Him.  But,  on  the  contrary,  when  conversing  with  the 
Herodians,  was  there  not  good  reason  to  hope  that  the 
young  Rabbi,  no  longer  on  His  guard,  would  i'all  into 
the  trap?  However,  dreading  lest  these  courtiers  should 
become  engaged  in  any  discussion  with  Him  (for  thus,  as 
they  were  unaccustomed  to  religious  controversies,  their 
new  allies  might  be  easily  confounded),  the  Sanhedrin  at 
the  same  time  commissioned  to  attend  them  some  of  their 
own  disciples  who  were  not  so  well  known  as  the  head  men 
of  the  Synagogue,  but  were  none  the  less  experts  in  guile1 
The  part  the  Herodians  were  to  play  in  this  odious  comedy 
was  to  counterfeit  the  actions  of  honest,  upright  men,2 
coming  forward  as  if  anxious  to  know  the  truth,  and  so 
lie  in  wait  for  an  opportune  3  instant  to  surprise  the  Lord. 

At  the  propitious  season  (so  it  seemed)  the  Herodians 
probably  pretended  to  be  engaged  in  an  argument  among 
themselves ;  then  approached  Jesus,  praying  that  he  would 
arbitrate  between  them.4 

"  Master,"  they  began,  with  great  demonstrations  of  rev- 
erence, "  we  know  that  you  are  true-spoken,  and  that  you 
do  not  put  yourself  out  for  any  one,  whoever  he  may  be ; 
for  you  have  no  respect  for  the  person  of  men,  but  teach 
the  way  of  God  in  all  sincerity.  Is  it  lawful  for  us  to  pay 
tribute  to  Cresar  or  not  ? " 

It  seemed  impossible  for  Jesus  to  escape  them  this  time. 
To  condemn  the  tribute  would  be  to  run  the  risk  of  incur- 
ring the  vengeance  of  Rome;  to  account  it  legitimate 
would  be  to  infuriate  the  Jews,  who  would  construe  it  as 
a  bit  of  flattery  intended  to  conciliate  these  Gentiles. 
Clearly  seeing  the  ambush,  the  Master  turned  toward  the 
Scribes. 

"  Hypocrites,"  He  said,  "  why  do  you  tempt  Me  ?  Bring 
me  the  coin  with  which  you  pay  the  tribute." 

1  'EyKaOfrovs  (Luke  xx.  20). 

2  'TiroKpivofxivovs  iai'Tobs  diKalovs  dmi  (Luke  xx.  20). 
8  UapaTTjprjaai'Tes  (Luke  xx.  20). 

4  Matt.  xxii.  16  ;  Luke  xx.  21. 


CESAR'S  DENARIUS.  189 

Not  one  among  the  Zealots  of  the  Law  could  keep  in  his 
purse  a  piece  of  metal  stamped  with  idolatrous  emblems ; 
it  was  necessary,  therefore,  to  procure  one  from  the  neigh- 
boring money-changers,  or  from  some  one  in  the  crowd. 
It  so  fell  out  that  the  piece  presented  to  the  Lord  was  not 
the  peculiar  coin  which  the  Eomans  had  authorized  for 
Judea,  —  which  bore  the  name  without  the  image  of  the 
Emperor,1  —  but  a  real  Roman  Denarius.  On  one  side 
Jesus  displayed  to  the  Pharisees  the  figure  of  Tiberius 
with  the  exergue:  Tiberius  CjESA.r,  Son  of  the  Divine 
Augustus.2 

"  Whose  is  this  image  and  this  inscription  ? "  the  Lord 
demanded  of  them. 

"  Caesar's,"  they  said. 

This  answer  contained  their  condemnation,  for,  following 
the  teaching  of  their  foremost  Rabbis,  to  accept  the  money 
of  a  sovereign  was  to  acknowledge  his  power.3  Now  the 
Pharisees  made  use  of  Caesar's  money  in  all  matters  of 
contract  and  commerce.  By  what  right,  after  reaping  the 
advantages  of  imperial  protection,  could  they  refuse  to  meet 
the  common  cost,  and  to  pay  what  they  owed  according  to 
strict  justice  ? 

"  Render  4  to  Caesar  that  which  is  Caesar's,"  added  Jesus, 
"  and  to  God  that  which  is  God's."  5 

This  decision  determined  what  falls  to  Caesar's  share  and 
what  is  God's.  To  the  princes  of  the  earth  belong  obe- 
dience and  tribute ;  the  soul  belongs  to  God.6 

This  left  the  Pharisees  hopeless  of  either  ensnaring  the 
Christ  in  His  talk  or  exciting  the  hatred  of  the  mob 
against  Him ;  they  retired  in  confusion.     Three  days  later 

1  Sepp.  Leben  Jesu,  b.  v.  k.  cxlii. 

2  Ti .  Caesar  .  Divi  .  Aug  .  F  .  Augustus.  On  the  reverse  is  a  woman 
seated,  and  these  words  :   Pontif.  [ex]  Maxim,  [us]. 

3  "  Ubicumque  numisma  alicujns  regis  obtinet,  illic  incolfe  regem  istum 
pro  domino  agnoscunt "  (Maimonides,  Gfezelah,  5). 

4  To  those  who  were  inquiring  whether  it  was  lawful  to  give  :  Sovvcu, 
Jesus  responds  that  it  is  not  a  question  of  giving,  but  of  paying  that  which 
is  due  :  airoSore  (Matt.  xxii.  21). 

5  Matt.  xxii.  21. 

6  "Ut  Csesari  quidem  pecuniam  reddas,  Deo  temetipsum"  (Tertullian, 
De  Idololatrid,  xv.). 


190  EOLY  WEEK. 

they  recalled  tins  scene  in  Pilate's  Pretorium,  but  only  to 
travesty  His  words  by  their  calumny  :  — 

"  We  found  this  fellow,"  they  then  said,  "  forbidding  the 
people  to  pay  tribute  to  Csesar." ' 


"  1 


III.    Jesus  and   the   Sadducees.  —  The   Great   Com- 
mandment.—  The  Christ  the  Son  of  David. 

Mark  xii.  18-37  ;  Matt.  xxii.  23-46  ;  Luke  xx.  27-45. 

This  new  defeat  so  discouraged  the  Sanhedrin  that  a 
majority  of  its  members  forthwith  renounced  the  struggle. 
Some,  nevertheless,  made  of  more  obstinate  stuff,  wished  to 
try  if  they  could  not  get  better  success.2  They  belonged 
to  that  sect  of  Sadducees  who  made  themselves  conspicu- 
ous among  the  Jews  by  their  Epicurean  tenets  and  their 
contempt  for  the  traditions.  Although  thus  far  they  had 
disdained  to  meddle  much  with  the  Nazarene,  leaving  to 
the  Pharisees  the  task  of  defending  their  observances  which 
He  condemned,  yet,  during  these  last  few  days,  they  had 
begun  to  fear  lest  some  new  uprising  should  come  of  this 
to  trouble  their  peace  witli  Borne.  Even  at  this  moment 
it  would  seem  that  it  was  not  so  much  hatred  which  set 
them  against  the  Christ  as  it  was  their  own  curiosity,  along 
with  a  certain  ambition  to  succeed  where  their  rivals  had 
lately  been  worsted.  They  counted  upon  confounding  Him 
with  one  of  the  objections  they  had  raised  against  the 
resurrection  of  the  body,  —  one  which  to  them  seemed 
unanswerable. 

Approaching  the  Saviour  with  every  token  of  considera- 
tion, — 

"  Master,"  they  began,  "  Moses  said : 3  'If  any  one  die 
without  any  children,  let  his  brother  marry  his  wife  and 
raise  up  children  to  his  brother.'  Now  there  were  with  us 
seven  brothers,  and  the  first  having  married,  died,  and,  as 
he  had  no  children,  he  left  his  wife  to  his  brother.  In  like 
manner  the  second  and  the  third,  and  so  on  to  the  seventh. 

1  Luke  xxiii.  2.  2  Mark  xii.  18-27.  8  Deut.  xxv.  5-10. 


JESUS  AND   THE  SADDUCEES.  191 

And  after  all  the  others,  the  wife  dies  also.  In  the  Resur- 
rection, to  which  one  of  the  seven  shall  she  be  as  wife,  for 
such  she  had  been  unto  them  all  ?  " 

This  tale,  invented  to  suit  their  purpose,  seemed  preg- 
nant with  weighty  matter  to  men  who  could  conceive  of 
no  life  nor  any  happiness  outside  and  beyond  the  senses. 
They  ridiculed  the  Pharisees'  decision,  that  the  first  of  the 
seven  husbands  would  take  back  his  wife,1  and  therefrom 
took  occasion  to  conclude  that  all  things  die  with  the 
body. 

How  infinitely  higher  was  the  reply  of  Jesus  !  For  an 
instant,  He  flung  open  Heaven's  gates  and  let  them  con- 
template, what  their  dull  hearts  had  never  dreamed,  —  the 
life  of  the  Blessed. 

"  In  this  life,"  He  said,2  "  men  take  unto  themselves 
wives,  and  women  take  unto  themselves  husbands ;  but 
amongst  those  that  are  judged  worthy  of  the  life  to  come 
and  of  being  raised  from  the  dead,  it  shall  not  be  thus. 
They  all  shall  be  immortal,  like  unto  the  Angels,  children 
of  God,  children  of  the  Resurrection."  Born  again  into  the 
incorruptible,  these  elect,  like  the  Angels,  shall  know  no 
need  of  preserving  their  race  by  generations  of  time  or  by 
mortal  marriage,  for  nothing  shall  perish  any  more,  neither 
anything  of  the  body,  nor  anything  that  is  of  the  soul,  but 
"  God  shall  be  all  in  all."  3 

These  words  showed  the  different  tone  which  Jesus  as- 
sumed with  the  Sadducees  from  that  with  which  He  treated 
the  Pharisees.  He  knew  that  there  was  more  self-conceit 
than  malice  in  the  queries  of  His  new  opponents  ;  further- 
more, taking  compassion  upon  the  blindness  which  led  them 
to  decry  the  possibility  of  a  supernatural  world,4  He  pointed 
out  the  twofold  cause  of  their  error :  this,  He  said,  was  be- 
cause they  misunderstood  the  power  of  God,  Who,  out  of 
His  love  for  mankind,  can  do  and  has  done  things  far  above 
the  reach  of  our  reason ;  it  was  also  because  they  had  as 

1  "  Mulier  ilia  quae  duobus  nupsit  in  hoc  mundo,  priori  restituitur  in 
mundo  futuro  "  (Sohar  Gen.,  f.  24,  96). 

2  Luke  xx.  34. 

3  1  Cor.  xv.  28. 

4  Acts  xxiii.  8. 


192  HOLY  WEEK. 

yet  but  poorly  understood  the  Scriptures,  and  had  degraded 
them  to  the  level  of  their  own  carnal  minds.  How  came 
it  that  they  hail  not  read  that  the  dead  rise  again,  even  as 
Moses  had  revealed  to  them  long  ago  ? x  Jesus  intention- 
ally omitted  the  Prophets,2  who  in  the  eyes  of  the  Sad- 
ducees  had  not  the  same  authority  as  the  Law,  but  simply 
appealed  to  their  great  law-giver,  as  witness  of  Jehovah 
and  sovereign  arbitrator  in  all  eases  of  doctrine. 

"  As  to  whether  the  dead  rise  again,  have  you  not  read  in 
the  Book  of  Moses,  in  the  passage  of  The  Bush,3  how  God 
said  to  him  :  '  I  am  the  God  of  Abraham,  the  God  of  Isaac, 
the  God  of  Jacob '  ?  "  If  these  Patriarchs  had  been  naught 
but  a  heap  of  poor  remains,  enclosed  in  their  lonely  tombs, 
Jehovah  would  not  have  deigned  to  take  this  title  and 
call  Himself  the  God  of  a  handful  of  cold  dust.  Therefore 
something  of  these  men  must  have  outlasted  their  death 
and  thus  still  remains  in  the  sight  of  the  Eternal ;  "  for 
God  is  not  the  God  of  the  dead,  but  of  the  living."  Then, 
extending  to  all  humanity  what  He  had  said  of  the  first 
fathers  of  Israel :  — 

"  All,"  added  the  Master,  "  are  living  unto  God.     And 

1  In  regard  to  this  question  so  keenly  debated  in  our  times  see  the 
scholarly  essay  by  M.  l'abbe  Vigouroux,  entitled  :  De  la  Croyance  dcs  H€- 
breux  a  Vimmortalitc  de  I'dme,  in  the  second  volume  of  La  Bible  et  les 
dkcouvertcs  modernes. 

2  We  know  how  powerfully  these  Seers  of  Israel  had  proclaimed  the 
dogma  of  the  Resurrection  :  — 

"  Those  of  your  people  whom  they  have  put  to  death 
shall  live  again  ; 
those  that  were  slain  in  the  midst  of  me 

shall  rise  again. 
Awake  from  your  slumbers  and  sing  God's  praises 

you  that  dwell  in  the  dust  ! 
Because  the  dew  that  falleth  on  you 
is  a  dew  of  light." 

(Is.  xxvi.  19.) 

"  And  all  the  multitude  of  them  that  sleep  in  the  dust  of  the  earth  shall 
once  more  awake,  some  unto  life  and  others  unto  the  reproach  everlasting" 
(Dan.  xii.  2  ;  compare  Ezekiel  xxxvii.  1-14). 

3'E7ri  rod  p&rov  moans  doubtless  :  "In  the  chapter  where  is  recounted 
the  Apparition  of  Jehovah  in  the  bush,"  for  this  marvel  had  given  its  name 
to  that  portion  of  Exodus.  In  like  manner  the  first  chapter  of  the  Third 
Book  of  Kings  was  called  "The  Ark  ;  "  so  too  the  first  chapter  of  Ezekiel 
bore  the  name  of  "  The  Chariot,"  etc. 


THE   GREAT  COMMANDMENT.  193 

therefore  you  do  greatly  deceive  yourselves,"  He  concluded, 
addressing  the  Sadducees.1 

The  people,  who  had  followed  this  new  debate,  stood 
speechless  with  wonder  at  such  power ;  some  Doctors  of 
the  Law  loudly  declared  their  delight,2  and  one  of  them, 
desiring  to  be  better  informed3  as  to  the  School  of  the 
Christ,  approached  nearer  and  put  this  question  to  Him:  — 

"  Master,  which  is  the  first  of  all  the  commandments  ? " 

This,  indeed,  was  one  of  the  questions  which  occupied 
every  thoughtful  mind  in  these  times,  disturbed  as  they 
were  by  the  futile  discussions  of  the  Synagogue.  In  their 
worship  of  the  Law  the  masters  of  Israel  had  really  ren- 
dered the  moral  law  an  issueless  labyrinth,  accumulating 
precept  upon  precept4  without  end,  concerning  its  every 
word.  For  some,  the  commandments  of  Tradition  even 
outweighed  those  of  Moses ;  for  others,  the  one  thing  es- 
sential was  to  scrupulously  follow  the  Pharisaic  "  Customs." 
Accordingly,  this  Scribe  asked  Jesus  to  pronounce  between 
them. 

The  response  of  the  Master  did  not  leave  them  long  in 
doubt.  He  pointed  to  the  legend  graven  upon  the  phylac- 
teries 5  of  His  hearers  :  each  of  them,  in  fact,  contained  that 

1  Mark  xii.  27 ;  Matt.  xxii.  32.  2  Tjllke  xx.  39. 

3  Mark  xii.  28-34.  The  word  ireipafav  in  S.  Matthew  cannot  have  the 
meaning  of  " to  tempt,  to  set  a  snare  for"  the  Savioivr,  for  in  S.  Mark  we 
see  that  the  doctor  was  satisfied  with  the  reply  of  the  Master,  and  moreover 
that  he  received  that  splendid  encomium  from  His  lips  :  "You  are  not  far 
from  God's  Kingdom."  For  this  reason  it  is  extremely  unlikely  that  this 
Scribe  should  have  approached  the  Lord  with  hostile  designs. 

*  Every  word  of  the  Pentateuch  had  been  scrutinized,  every  letter 
counted,  and  the  result  of  all  this  research  was  to  impose  248  positive  and 
365  negative  precepts  upon  a  people  least  fitted  for  metaphysical  subtil- 
ties  ;  and  this  grand  total  (613)  was  equal  to  the  letters  in  the  Decalogue. 
The  Doctors  were  far  from  agreeing  as  to  the  relative  value  of  these  various 
commandments.  Generally  speaking,  perfection  consisted  in  the  numerous 
ablutions,  in  the  fringes  upon  their  clothing,  which  were  to  recall  The  Eter- 
nal and  His  Law,  especially  in  the  phylacteries,  which  they  zealously 
crowded  with  texts  from  the  Holy  Books. 

5  The  phylacteries,  as  we  know,  were  long  bands  of  parchment  covered 
with  sentences  from  the  Law,  which  the  Jews  wound  about  their  head  and 
arms.  The  four  bands  composing  the  phylactery  set  upon  the  brow,  bore 
the  following  passages  from  the  Mosaic  Books  :  the  first,  Exodus  xiii.  1-10  ; 
the  second,  Exodus  xiii.  11-16  ;  the  third,  Deuteronomy  vi.  4-9  ;  the  fourth, 
Deuteronomy,  xi.  13-21. 

VOL.    II.  —  13 


194  HOLY    WEEK. 

Prayer,  repeated  twice  a  day  by  pious  Israelites,  which 
commenced  with  the  Hebrew  word:  Shema,  Hearken  — 
"  Hearken,  O  Israel,  the  Lord  thy  God  is  the  only  God. 
And  thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart, 
with  all  thy  soul,  with  all  thy  mind,  and  with  all  thy 
strength." 

"  Lo !  the  first  Commandment/'  said  the  Saviour,  "  and 
the  second,  which  is  like  u^to  it,  is  this:  Thou  shalt  love 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  There  is  no  other  commandment 
greater  than  these." 

We  should  have  to  be  living,  like  the  Jews  of  that  day, 
in  the  midst  of  the  clouds  accumulated  by  the  Kabbis,  to 
appreciate  what  a  holy,  beneficent  light  this  speech  seemed 
to  shed  upon  their  overflowing  hearts.  The  simplest  minds 
among  them  easily  saw  its  truth  ;  in  two  words  it  expressed 
the  entire  Law,  or  rather  it  reduced  it  to  one  single  duty : 
Love,  —  to  love  God,  above  all  things,  and  the  neighbor  for 
God's  dear  sake  and  in  His  sight.  The  Lord  did  not  con- 
demn the  ignorant  and  weak  to  any  irksome  toil;  He  did 
not  even  exact  of  them  that  they  should  search  the  Script- 
ures. For  mankind  this  is  the  whole  Law  and  the  Prophets, 
that  they  love  God  and  their  fellow-man. 

Enraptured  with  a  Doctrine  which  confirmed  all  that 
he  had  been  able  to  descry  in  the  Holy  Books,  the  Scribe 
testified  openly  to  his  delight. 

"Master,"  he  cried,  "you  have  well  said!" 

And  one  by  one  he  repeated  the  Saviour's  words:  — 

"  Truly  God  is  One,  and  there  is  none  other  besides  Him  ! 
.  .  .  He  must  be  loved  with  all  our  heart,  with  all  our  in- 
telligence, with  our  whole  soul,  and  with  all  our  strength. 
...  To  love  our  neighbor  as  ourself  is  more  than  all 
holocausts  and  burnt  sacrifices." 

These  words  of  Osee,1  connected  in  this  way  with  those 
of  the  Christ,  show  what  pious  needfulness  the  Scribe  had 
brought  to  the  study  of  sacred  literature.  Jesus  was 
touched  at  such  tokens  of  earnestness.  He  praised  the 
wisdom  of  his  reply  and  encouraged  him  to  take  the  final 
steps  which  yet  lay  between  him  and  the  perfect  light. 
1  Osee  vi.  6. 


THE   CHRIST  THE  SON  OF  DAVID.  195 

"You  are  not  far/'  He  told  him,  "from  the  Heavenly 
Kingdom." 

This  conversation  reached  the  ears  of  the  Pharisees,  for 
now,  more  than  ever  agitated,  after  the  failure  of  their 
emissaries,  they  had  gathered  together  and  were  inspecting 
with  an  anxious  eye  this  Man  Whom  they  durst  no  longer 
openly  affront. 

Jesus  was  well  aware  of  their  presence,  and  this  time 
without  waiting  for  them  to  cross-question  Him,  He 
addressed  His  words  to  them.1 

"What  think  you  of  the  Christ?"  He  asked  them; 
"  whose  Son  is  He  ? " 

"David's,"  they  answered. 

"  How  then,"  replied  Jesus,  "  did  David,  divinely  in- 
spired,2 call  Him  his  Lord  ? 

"  '  The  Lord  said  unto  my  Lord  : 
Sit  Thou  on  My  right  hand, 
until  I  reduce  Thy  foes  as  a  footstool  unto  Thy  feet.' 

"If  David  calls  Him  his  Lord,  how  then  is  He  his 
Son  ? " 

They  could  not  answer  this  question  without  acknowl- 
edging the  true  origin  of  Jesus ;  David's  Son,  according  to 
the  flesh,  He  was  still  his  Lord  and  Master,  by  eternal  gen- 
eration ; 3  yet  now  passion  blinded  their  minds,  and  they 
remained  silent  while  that  "  the  people  heard  Him  gladly."  4 
After  the  controversies  of  this  morning  no  one  dared  ques- 
tion the  Christ ;  they  had  discovered  at  last  that  it  would 
be  far  easier  to  destroy  Him  than  to  refute  His  teaching. 

1  Matt.  xxii.  41-46. 

2  Ps.  cix.  1,  2.     Aai'tiS  direv  iv  tlL  Trverj/xaTi  t<£  ayiq)  (Mark  xii.  36). 

3  The  Scribes  themselves  had  some  idea  of  this  Mystery,  for  in  their 
Aramean  Paraphrase  they  thus  translated  the  words  of  the  Psalmist :  "  The 
Lord  (Jehovah  in  the  Hebrew)  hath  said  to  the  Word  (Adonai  in  the 
Hebrew)  :  Sit  Thou  at  My  right  hand." 

*  Mark  xii.  37 ;  Matt.  xxii.  46. 


196  HOLY    WEEK. 

IV.     Denunciation  of  the  Phakisees. 

Matt,  xxiii.  1-39  ;  Mark  xii.  38-40  ;  Luke  xx.  45-47. 

Jesus  then  turned  toward  the  assembled  crowds,  and 
branding  the  hypocrisy  of  these  the  masters  of  Israel,  He 
spoke  their  final  condemnation:  — 

"The  Scribes  and  the  Pharisees,"  He  said,1  "are  seated 
in  the  Chair  of  Moses.  Take  heed  then  and  do  every  tiling 
they  shall  say  to  you  ;  but  do  not  according  to  their  works, 
for  they  say  and  do  not.  They  bind  together  heavy  and 
intolerable  burdens  and  lay  them  on  men's  shoulders,  but 
they  will  not  move  them  with  even  their  finger-tips.  They 
do  all  their  works  to  the  end  that  they  may  be  seen  by 
men;  to  this  end,  they  broaden  their  phylacteries  ami 
make  themselves  long  fringes.  They  love  the  foremost 
places  at  the  Feasts,  and  the  first  seats  in  the  synagogues, 
to  have  men  salute  them  in  the  market- scpuares,  and  to  be 
called  Kabbis." 

How  far  removed  was  this  Judaic  society,  where  such 
affectation  and  haughtiness  prevailed,  from  the  new  rule 
now  announced  by  Jesus !  Here  there  is  only  one  Master, 
the  Father,  Who  reigns  in  Heaven;  one  only  Doctor,  the 
Christ;  one  only  Nation  of  brethren,  among  whom  the 
greatest  is  he  who  makes  himself  servant  of  all,  and  where 
the  first  places  are  reserved  for  the  humblest.  And  this 
was  the  perfection  which  the  Pharisees  spurned,  that  so 
they  might  entrench  themselves  in  that  hypocrisy  which 
was  now  destroying  them  and  their  nation  !  Jesus  would 
not  suffer  such  depravity  to  go  unrebuked,  and,  for  eight 
distinct  times,  standing  in  the  centre  of  the  listening 
throngs,  now  dumb  with  astonishment,  He  launched  His 
Anathemas  upon  the  princes  and  doctors  of  Israel :  — 

"  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  who 
have  taken  the  key  of  knowledge,  and  made  use  of  it  only 
to  close 2  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  against  men !     You 

1  Matt,  xxiii.  1-36. 

2  They  closed  the  gates  of  the  celestial  Kingdom  by  straining  the  sever- 
ity of  the  Law  to  the  point  of  absurdity,  thus  rendering  the  practical  ob- 


DENUNCIATION  OF  THE  PHARISEES.  197 

enter  not  yourselves,  but  hinder  others  from  entering 
therein. 

"  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  who  de- 
vour the  homes  of  widows,  while  you  feign  to  pray  the 
longer!  Wherefore  your  judgment  shall  be  but  the  more 
terrible.1 

"  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  because 
you  run  over  land  and  sea  to  make  a  single  proselyte,  and 
after  he  is  become  one  you  make  him  a  son  of  Gehenna 
twofold  worse  than  yourselves  ! 

"  Woe  to  you,  blind  leaders,  who  say  :  '  If  a  man  swear 
by  the  Temple,  't  is  nothing ;  but  if  he  swear  by  the  gold  of 
the  Temple,  he  is  bound.' 2  Blind  and  foolish  folk  !  Which 
is  of  greater  dignity,  the  gold,  or  the  Temple  which  sancti- 
fies the  gold  ? 3  .  .  .  He  who  swears  by  the  Temple  swears 
by  the  Temple  and  Him  that  dwelleth  therein. 

"  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  who  pay 
tithes  upon  a  leaf  of  mint  or  anise  or  cumin,4  and  have 

servance  of  it  hateful  and  repellent ;  but  most  of  all,  by  drawing  the  people 
away  from  belief  in  Jesus,  they  were  effectually  shutting  "The  Gate"  of 
Heaven  (John  x.  9). 

1  Although  this  second  malediction  is  not  found  in  S.  Matthew,  either 
in  the  MSS.  of  Sinai,  the  Vatican,  or  Beza,  yet  S.  Luke's  (xx.  47)  evidence 
precludes  any  doubt  as  to  the  fact  that  it  was  uttered  at  this  time. 

2  The  glibness  with  which  the  Jews  perjured  themselves  was  a  common 
saying  among  the  Pagans  :  — 

Ecce  negas,  jurasque  niihi  per  templa  Tonantis  ; 
Non  credo  :  jura,  verpe,  per  Anchialum. 

(Amr-chai-Aloh,  "by  the  living  God  ! " 
2  Kings  ii.  29.) 

Martial,  Epigrammata,  xi.  94. 

3  "It  is  plain  to  be  seen  that  the  Temple  and  the  Altar,  which  sanctify 
their  offerings,  are  of  greater  dignity  than  the  gift  which  is  placed  thereon 
to  be  sanctified  by  them.  And  yet  these  blind  guides  were  so  unreasonable 
as  to  claim  that  an  oath  sworn  upon  the  gift  or  upon  the  gold  thus  conse- 
crated in  the  Temple  and  over  the  Altar,  was  more  inviolable  than  one 
sworn  in  the  name  of  the  Temple  or  the  Altar  itself.  Why  ?  Because  they 
desired  that  gifts  should  be  multiplied  and  the  gold  increased,  for  from  this 
they  made  their  profit  ;  and  that  is  why  they  sought  to  raise  them  in  men's 
esteem,  going  so  far  in  their  blindness  as  to  set  the  offering  higher  than  the 
Temple  and  the  Altar  whereby  it  was  consecrated"  (Bossuet,  Meditations : 
DERNIERE  semaine,  ixe  journee). 

4  Anise  and  Cumin  are  two  umbelliferous  plants  whose  seeds  are  used  in 
cooking,  for  their  aromatic  and  seasoning  properties. 


198  HOLY   WEEK. 

neglected  the  weightier  matters  of  the  Law  :  justice,  mercy, 
good  faith!1  These  things  you  ought  to  have  done,  and 
not  to  have  left  the  others  undone.  Blind  leaders,  who 
strain  your  water  that  you  may  not  swallow  a  gnat,2  and 
gulp  down  a  camel ! 

"  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  because 
you  are  like  to  sepulchres  o'erwhitened,  which  appear  beau- 
tiful without,  but  within  are  full  of  dead  men's  bones  and 
every  sort  of  rottenness !  Even  so  you  outwardly  appear 
righteous  in  men's  eyes,  but  inwardly  you  are  full  of 
hypocrisy  and  wickedness. 

"  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  who 
build  the  sepulchres  of  the  Prophets,  and  adorn  the  monu- 
ments of  the  righteous,  and  say :  '  If  we  had  lived  in  the 
time  of  our  fathers,  we  would  not  have  been  accomplices 
with  them  in  the  blood  of  the  Prophets!'  You,  therefore, 
confess  that  you  are  the  children  of  those  who  slew  them. 
Fill  up  the  measure  of  your  fathers !  Serpents,  spawn  of 
vipers,  how  will  you  escape  the  damnation  of  Gehenna  ? 
For  lo  !  now  I  send  you  Prophets,  wise  men,  doctors  ;  some 
you  will  kill,  others  you  will  crucify;  you  will  scourge  them 
in  your  synagogues,  you  will  persecute  them  from  town  to 
town,  so  that  all  the  innocent  blood  shed  upon  earth  may 
descend  upon  you,  from  the  blood  of  Abel  the  righteous 
unto  the  blood  of  Zachary,3  son  of  Barachias,  whom  you 

1  Mich.  vi.  8. 

2  Leviticus  (xi.  20,  23,  41,  42)  forbade  the  eating  of  any  unclean  beast. 
For  fear  of  violating  this  law,  the  Pharisees  drank  nothing  before  having 
carefully  filtered  it. 

3  As  to  Zachary,  see  Vol.  II.  p.  91.  The  murder  of  this  Prophet  was 
regarded  by  the  Jews  as  one  of  those  crimes  which  had  in  past  times  most 
lingered  the  Lord  and  called  for  His  vengeance  upon  Jerusalem.  "The 
blood  of  Zachary,  shed  within  the  sacred  courts,  could  not  be  washed  away,' 
says  the  Talmud,  "and  Nabuchodonosor,  upon  his  entering  into  the  Tem- 
ple, found  that  it.  still  gushed  from  the  spot  as  brightly  as  upon  the  day  it 
was  first  shed.  Fain  to  appease  it,  he  brought  certain  *A  the  Rabbis  to  the 
place  and  slew  them  ;  still  the  blood  gushed  forth,  with  ever  the  same  even 
flow.  He  seized  some  children  who  were  returning  home  from  school  and 
immolated  them  on  the  same  spot  ;  nor  yet  was  the  blood  appeased.  He 
summoned  thither  certain  young  priests  and  massacred  them  there  ;  and 
the  blood  continued  to  gush  forth.  Nearly  a  hundred  thousand  victims 
succumbed  without  checking  it  one  whit.  Whereupon,  drawing  nigh  the 
spot,  Nabuchodonosor  cried,  'Zachary,  Zachary,  thou  hast  destroyed  the 


DENUNCIATION  OF  THE  PHARISEES.  199 

slew  between  the  Temple  and  the  Altar.  I  say  unto  you, 
of  a  truth,  that  all  these  things  shall  fall  upon  this  present 
generation." 

Vehement  and  fierce  as  these  words  sound,  coming  from 
the  gentle  Jesus,  yet  we  know  He  rather  bemoaned  than 
cursed  the  faithlessness  of  Sion;  and  He  manifests  His  feel- 
ings now  more  clearly  by  repeating  that  tender  reproach 
which  we  once  before  heard  from  His  lips:  — 

"  Jerusalem  !  Jerusalem  !  thou  who  killest  the  Prophets 
and  stonest  them  that  are  sent  unto  thee,  how  often  would 
I  have  gathered  together  thy  children,  even  as  a  hen  gather- 
eth  her  little  ones  under  her  wings,  and  thou  wouldst  not ! 
And  behold  your  city  shall  be  left  desolate ;  for  I  say  unto 
you,  you  shall  not  see  Me  henceforth  till  you  shall  say : 
'  Blessed  be  He  Who  cometh  in  the  Name  of  the  Lord  ! ' " 1 

A  mournful  consolation  this,  for  the  nation  of  Deicides  ! 
Her  last  seed  shall  be  converted  only  at  the  end  of  time, 
and  then  shall  mourn  the  crime  of  their  forefathers.  This, 
then,  was  the  only  hope  that  Jesus  could  hold  forth  for  the 
future  to  these  Jews  who  now  listened  to  Him,  and  who 
were  to  see,  before  their  death,  the  Temple  destroyed  and 
their  race  scattered  over  the  face  of  the  globe. 

flower  of  thy  people  :  wouldst  thou  have  me  extinguish  them  utterly?' 
At  these  words,  the  blood  ceased  to  gush  from  the  place  "  (Lightfoot,  Horce 
Hcbra'iccc,  in  Matt,  xxiii.  35). 
1  Matt,  xxiii.  37-39. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE   LAST   PROPHECIES. 

Mark  xii.  41-44,  xiii.  1-37,  xiv.  1,  2,  10-11 ;   Luke  xxi.  1-36,  xxii.  1-6  ; 
Matt.  xxiv.  1-51,  xxv.  1-46,  xxvi.  1-5,  14-16. 

Jesus  was  standing  not  far  from  the  Sanctuary  when 
He  anathematized  the  Pharisees.  Before  descending  from 
this  upper  terrace1  to  the  Gentiles'  porches,  He  seated 
Himself  in  the  court  that  was  open  to  women,  just  over 
opposite  the  great  coffers  in  which  all  offerings  for  the  ser- 
vice of  the  Temple  2  were  deposited.  These  three  caskets, 
called  Schoferoth,  from  their  orifices,  which  were  like  the 
bell  of  a  trumpet,  were  now  surrounded  by  a  knot  of 
wealthy  Jews,  who  were  casting  in  their  bountiful  gifts 
with  all  the  ostentatiousness  imaginable.  Just  behind 
them  a  poor  widow  stole  up  to  the  box  and  dropped  in 
her  treasure,  —  two  small  pieces  worth  the  quarter  of  a 
Roman  as.3     "It  was  all  her  living,"  and  Jesus  knew  it. 

Forthwith,  calling  His  disciples,  He  pointed  out  th« 
humble  soul  to  them. 

"  In  truth,"  He  said,  "  this  poor  widow  has  given  more 
than  all  the  others;  for  they,  indeed,  have  put  but  a  por- 
tion from  their  overabundance  into  the  treasury,  while  she, 
out  of  her  poverty,  has  given  all  that  she  had,  even  her 
whole  living." 

1  Upon  this?  second  terrace  and  in  the  Women's  Court  stood  those  coffers 
in  which  Jesus  saw  the  poor  widow  cast  her  offering. 

2  Mark  xii.  41-44. 

8  Aeirrdv:  Prouhta.  This  was  the  smallest  coin  current  among  the  Jews. 
S.  Mark,  writing  i'<>r  Roman  readers,  adds  that  two  Xe7rrd  were  worth  a 
guadrans,  or  the  eighth  part  of  an  as;  the  value  of  the  as,  in  the  time -of 
Jesus  Christ,  was  about  one  cent. 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  201 

The  Lord  rose  thereupon,  and  traversed  the  length  of  the 
porches.1  His  disciples,  following  after,  were  admiring  the 
splendors  of  the  Temple,  —  all  the  more,  indeed,  because 
Jesus  had  just  now  predicted  its  destruction.2  Everything 
about  this  edifice  enchanted  their  delighted  eyes  :  mosaics, 
sculpturing,  colonnades,  gateways,  all  gayly  bedight  with 
precious  metals.  High  above  their  heads  rose  the  terraces, 
like  a  mountain  of  white  marble,  bearing  on  its  brow 
the  glittering  facade  of  the  Sanctuary,  resplendent  with 
burnished  gold. 

One  of  the  disciples  stopped  the  Lord. 

"  Master,"  said  he,  "  see !  look  at  these  stones !  what  a 
structure ! "  3 

Others  added  that  all  this  magnificence  was  the  free  gift 
of  Israel,  and  each  uttered  his  prayers  for  this  national 
monument,  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  world  and  the 
crowning  honor  of  Judea.  But  the  sentence  was  irrevo- 
cable. And  now  Jesus  could  only  renew  it  in  formal 
terms. 

"  Of  all  these  great  buildings,"  He  said,  "  truly  I  tell  you, 
there  shall  not  remain  one  stone  upon  stone."  4 

Such  was  the  Saviour's  farewell  to  the  Temple.  Thirty- 
five  years  later  the  Sanctuary  crumbled  into  dust  amid  the 
flames,  never  again  to  tower  over  the  town.  All  in  vain 
did  Julian  the  Apostate  try  to  give  the  lie  to  those  pro- 
phetic words  of  the  Christ ;  from  the  ruins  heaped  there  by 
the  hand  of  God,  flames  shot  forth  and  put  the  terrified 
workmen  to  flight.5     It  was  decreed  that  the  ruin  should 

1  Matt.  xxiv.  1,  2. 

2  Matt,  xxiii.  38. 
8  Mark  xiii.  1. 

4  Every  Friday  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem  render  involuntary  homage  to  this 
Prophecy  of  the  Christ.  Gathering  together  at  the  base  of  a  rock  of  the 
Haram,  one  of  the  still  visible  remains  of  the  Temple,  they  pass  whole 
hours  in  weeping  over  the  ruin  before  them,  kissing  the  stones  and  chanting 
passages  of  the  Bible  between  their  sobs  and  groans. 

5  "  While  Alypius,  aided  by  the  governor  of  the  province,  pushed  on  the 
work  as  well  as  they  might,  terrible  globes  of  fire  burst  forth  from  the  foun- 
dations, which  were  first  shaken  by  violent  concussions ;  the  workmen,  who 
kept  on  beginning  the  work  anew,  were  again  burned  at  every  fresh  attempt; 
the  spot  finally  became  inaccessible  and  the  enterprise  was  abandoned " 
(Ammianus  Marcellinus,  lib.  xxiii.  cap.  1). 


202  HOLY    WEEK. 

remain  complete,  and  that  "  the  Holy  Place  should  be  left 
desolate  forevermore."  1 

The  little  company  left  the  Temple,  crossed  Kedron- 
Gorge,  then  clambered  up  the  Mount  of  Olives.  Once  on 
the  top  Jesus  sat  down,  and  before  withdrawing  farther 
toward  Bethany,  lingered  to  gaze  at  the  town  which  He 
was  never  to  enter  again  except  to  die.  From  this  high 
point  the  whole  scene  of  the  Passion  was  now  spread  be- 
fore His  eyes :  at  His  feet  was  Gethsemani ;  yonder,  on 
Mount  Sion,  shone  the  palaces  of  the  pontiffs  and  Herod's 
royal  residence ;  facing  Him  and  nearer  the  Temple  stood 
Pilate's  Pretorium,  while  afar  off  He  could  see  Calvary  and 
the  tomb. 

For  a  time  the  disciples  respected  the  Master's  silent 
revery,  but  soon,  disquieted  by  all  they  had  just  beeu  hear- 
ing, some  of  them  approached  Him.  These  were  Peter, 
James,  John,  and  Andrew ;  they  wanted  Him  to  explain 
to  them  personally  the  mystery  contained  in  His  final 
words. 

"  When  shall  all  these  things  take  place  ?  What  shall 
be  the  Sign"  of  His  Coming  and  the  end  of  time  ?2 

Jesus  did  not  fully  satisfy  their  queries,  for  the  hour 
which  they  desired  to  know  is  still  God's  secret ;  but  He 
unveiled  so  much  of  the  future  for  their  benefit  as  it  was 
fitting  for  them  to  know, —  the  approaching  end  of  the  Jew- 
ish world,  and  the  more  fearsome  ending  of  the  whole 
world.  Indeed  it  was  with  design  that  the  Lord  united 
these  two  catastrophes.  He  knew  that,  for  the  Apostles, 
imbued  with  Judaic  prejudices,  Jerusalem  was  everything, 
and  its  ruin  meant  that  of  the  universe.  And,  in  conse- 
quence of  this  confusion,  which  continued  to  linger  in  their 
minds  until  after  the  actual  destruction  of  the  Holy  City., 
the  disciples  remained  in  a  state  of  continual  expectation 
and  watchfulness.  And  this  was  what  Jesus  wished ;  His 
Prophecy  was  framed,  not  so  much  to  reveal  the  things  of 
the  future  as  to  give  them  a  lesson  ;  it  was  not  meant  in 
the  least  to  satisfy  a  vain  curiosity,  nor,  by  a  clear  view 
of  the  future,  to  plunge  the  faithful  into  discouragement  or 
i  Matt,  xxiii.  38.  2  Mark  xiii.  3,  4. 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  203 

presumption.  Hence  the  care  which  the  Lord  took  to  en- 
velop His  thought  in  figurative  language,  linking  events 
which  had  so  many  points  in  common,  and  dealing  with 
facts  even  as  one  Who  sees  all  things  as  eternally  present, 
unto  Whom  a  thousand  years  are  as  one  day.  •  Hence,  too, 
the  form  in  which  the  Apostles  afterwards  recorded  this 
prediction  of  the  Master.  Faithful  interpreters  of  Jesus, 
they  pointed  out  to  their  own  disciples  two  horizons,  one 
nicjh  at  hand,  the  other  stretching  afar  off  to  the  end  of  the 
world,  yet  so  alike  in  outline,  in  color,  and  appearance,  that 
the  near  landscape  seems  at  first  sight  undistinguishable 
from  the  distant  prospect.  It  is  especially  in  Saint  Mat- 
thew and  in  Saint  Mark  that  the  Prophecy  of  Jesus 
assumes  this  character ;  in  Saint  Luke,  the  two  dread  dis- 
asters can  be  more  distinctly  discerned,  and  the  language  of 
the  Master  which  indicates  this  difference  is  here  more 
carefully  noted.  Hence  we  prefer  to  follow  the  latter  Wit- 
ness, for  he  will  enable  us  to  determine  best  what  is  proper 
to  each  of  the  several  events  predicted. 

Jesus  revealed,  first,  what  was  to  precede  the  fall  of 
Jerusalem  : J  false  prophets  seducing  Judea  ; 2  a  thousand 
scourges  falling  upon  her,  wars,  plagues,  famines,  great 
earthquakes  ;  then  "  the  beginning  of  sorrows,"  3  —  that  is 
to  say,  the  persecution  of  the  new-born  Church,  wherein 
the  weakest  shall  succumb  beneath  their  trials,  one  brother 
denouncing  another,  fathers  betraying  their  children,4  hor- 
rible scandals,  "  charity  frozen  up  in  their  hearts ; "  but  all 
this  time  faith  gaining  ground  even  while  evil  increases, 
and  "  the  Gospel,  as  preached  throughout  the  world,"  made 

1  Luke  xxi.  8-19  ;  Matt.  xxiv.  4-14. 

2  This  sign,  foretokening  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  shall  be  witnessed 
again,  but  fraught  with  greater  terrors,  at  the  end  of  time  ;  the  bewitchments 
of  that  day  shall  prevail  against  all  human  power  ;  it  shall  be  the  last  wild 
onset  of  Satan,  the  reign  of  illusions  and  unreason,  and  of  the  subtlest 
hypocrisies  of  all.  "  There  shall  rise  false  christs  and  false  prophets,  who 
shall  show  signs  and  wonders  so  as  to  lead  astray,  if  that  were  possible, 
even  the  elect"  (Matt.  xxiv.  24  ;  Mark  xiii.  22.) 

3  Anguish  so  great  that  the  Sacred  Text  compares  it  to  the  pains  of 
childbirth  :   dpxv  didivwv  ravra  (Mark  xiii.  8). 

4  "  Primo  conrepti  qui  fatebantnr,  deinde  indicio  eorum  multitudo 
ingens  "  (Tacitus,  Annates,  xv.  44 ;  2  Tim.  iy.  16  ;  Hebr.  passim). 


204  HOLY   WEEK. 

known  unto  all.1  Such  was  to  be  the  earliest  age  of  the 
Church. 

"  Thereupon,"  continued  Jesus,2  "  the  end  shall  come. 
When  you  shall  see  the  abomination  of  desolation  in  the 
Holy  Place3  (Matthew  and  Mark4),  when  you  shall  be- 
hold the  hosts  encompassing  Jerusalem  (Luke),  know  that 
its  ruin  is  nigh.  Then  let  them  that  are  in  Judea  flee  into 
the  mountains,  let  not  him  who  is  on  the  house-top  descend 
to  take  anything  from  his  dwelling,5  and  let  not  him  who 
is  in  the  field  return  in  quest  of  his  garment.  Woe  to  the 
women  with  child  and  them  that  give  suck  in  those  days ! 
Pray  that  your  flight  happen  not  during  the  winter  nor  on 
a  Sabbath-day,6  for  there  shall  be  then  great  affliction,  such 
as,  since  the  beginning  of  the  world  up  to  this  present,  hath 
never  been  nor  ever  shall  be  aught  like  unto  it." 

Every  line  of  this  Prophecy  was  a  vivid  representation 
of  the  times  which  were  to  come.  Never,  indeed,  was  the 
spirit  of  seduction  so  potent  with  the  people  as  when  the 
siege  of  Jerusalem  was  close  at  hand.  Now,  at  the  call  of 
Teudas,  the  populace  rushed  to  the  Jordan,  carrying  with 

1  Coloss.  i.  6,  23  :  2  Tim.  iv.  17. 

2  Luke  xxi.  20-24  ;  Matt.  xxiv.  15-21  ;  Mark  xiii.  14-19. 

3  B5e\i/y/m  t?)s  epyyxwaeus  is  a  translation  of  those  two  words  of  Daniel, 
DOttf  ]')p'$  (Dan.  ix.  27).  By  this  very  many  interpreters  understand  the 
Roman  eagles,  adored  as  idols  hy  the  soldiers  ;  hut  it  was  not  at  the  last 
siege  only  that  these  emblems  appeared  in  Jerusalem,  for  they  had  already 
entered  therein  with  the  train  of  Pompey  and  of  Pilate.  Hence  it  is  more 
likely  that  Jesus  is  here  referring  to  the  profanation  of  the  Temple  by  the 
Zealots. 

4  SS.  Matthew  and  Mark  add  directly  :  "  Let  him  that  readeth  under- 
stand" (Matt,  xxiii.  15  ;  Mark  xiii.  14).  Apparently  these  are  words  in- 
serted into  the  Lord's  discourse  by  the  Evangelists,  and  intended  to  attract 
the  reader's  attention  to  an  expression  hard  to  understand  (Jansenius  of 
( ihent,  in  loco). 

6  In  the  East  the  flat  house-tops  enable  one  to  pass  from  one  quarter  of 
the  city  to  another,  and  sometimes  even  to  reach  the  city  gates,  without 
descending  to  the  street.  Perhaps  this  is  the  purport  of  Jesus'  recommen- 
dation, unless  indeed  it  is  to  he  understood  simply:  "Descend  by  the 
outer  stairway  without  losing  the  time  required  to  pass  through  the  inte- 
rior of  the  house." 

6  Up  to  the  time  of  Jerusalem's  destruction  the  Jews  converted  to  Chris- 
tianity observed  certain  customs  of  their  nation,  and  in  particular  the  Sab- 
batic rules,  by  which  anv  journey  or  flight  would  be  rendered  impossible 
upon  the  sacred  day. 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  205 

them  their  goods,  fully  persuaded  that  the  stream  would 
stand  apart  before  their  approach ; i  again,  the  dismayed 
city  saw  thirty  thousand  Jews  going  up  to  the  desert,  led 
thither  by  a  false  prophet,  and  waiting  upon  the  Mount  of 
Olives  for  the  walls  to  fall  before  them,  as  of  old  the  walls 
of  Jericho  had  fallen2  There,  too,  was  Simon  the  Magi- 
cian, multiplying  his  deceptive  marvels ; 3  while,  over 
yonder,  were  to  hang  two  sons  of  Judas  the  Gaulonite, 
crucified  for  having  renewed  the  sedition  set  on  foot  by 
their  father.4 

All  these  disturbances  would  soon  shake  the  land  of 
Judea.  The  rebellion,  continued  under  the  rule  of  Caligula 
and  Claudius,  broke  out  openly  in  the  reign  of  Nero; 
"after  the  rumors  of  war  shall  succeed  war"5  itself,  to- 
gether with  such  disasters  that  the  Jew  Josephus  considers 
these  the  prelude  of  his  country's  destruction.6  Their 
wisest  leaders  were  shaken  ;  their  towns  were  divided  into 
two  camps  ; 7  peoples  and  cities  flung  themselves  upon  each 
other  with  fury  ;  blood  flowed  in  every  land, —  in  Gaul,  un- 
der Vindex  and  Virginius,  on  the  Danube,  in  Germany 
and  Brittany,  even  to  the  frontiers  of  the  Parthian  Empire. 
Those  who  escaped  the  sword  succumbed  to  other  plagues : 
under  Claudius  the  famine  was  a  permanent  evil  ;8  during 
one  autumn  season  the  pestilence  reaped  its  harvest  of 
thirty  thousand  inhabitants  in  Pome,9  and  at  the  same 
time  the  earth  trembled  and  quivered  in  every  known 
region.  Jerusalem  was  not  the  only  spot  disturbed  : 10  about 
Naples  the  soil  had  already  begun  to  smoke,  sending  out 
low,  sinister  murmurings  ; n  Crete,  Apamea,  Laodicea,  Rome 

1  Josephus,  Antiqiiitates,  xx.  5,  1. 

2  Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  ii.  13,  5. 

3  Acts  viii.  9,  24. 

4  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xx.  5,  2. 

5  Matt.  xxiv.  6. 

6  Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  ii.  17,  10. 

7  Josephus,  Antiqiiitates,  xx.  8,  6. 

8  "  Assiduas  sterilitates "  (Suetonius,  Claudius,  18.  Compare  Acts 
xL  28). 

9  Tacitus,  Annales,  xvi.  13.     Suetonius,  Nero,  xxxix. 

10  Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  iv.  4,  5. 

11  Strabo,  lib.  v.  cap.  iv.  4,  5,  6,  9.     Diodorus  of  Sicily,  iv.  21. 


20G  HOLY    WEEK. 

itself,  trembled  upon  their  great  liases,1  while  tliat  queen  of 
the  world  only  profited  by  these  dreadful  warnings  to  un- 
loose all  her  horrors  upon  the  disciples  of  the  Christ ;  some 
they  crucified,  others  were  east  before  wild  beasts;  others, 
saturated  with  pitch  and  resin,  were  set  fire  to  during  a 
summer's  evening  festival,  and  like  living  torches  illumi- 
nated the  gardens  of  Nero.2  Surely  it  seemed  as  if,  accord- 
ing to  the  Master's  prediction,  an  implacable  hatred  had 
moved  the  whole  human  family  to  rise  in  arms  against  His 
disciples.3 

The  fulfilment  of  the  Prophecy  was  not  less  literal  as 
regards  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem.  One  of  their  own  tradi- 
tions, recorded  by  Josephus,  foretold  that  the  town  would  be 
devastated  and  the  Temple  burnt  so  soon  as  ever  the  Holy 
Place  should  be  soiled  by  Jewish  hands.  "Although  the 
Zealots  did  not  believe  in  this  prophecy,  they  accomplished 
it,"  adds  the  historian.4  Shortly  after  the  investment  of 
the  city  by  Cestius,5  the  Temple  became  their  citadel  and 

1  There  was  an  earthquake  in  Civic  in  the  year  46  ;  at  Borne  on  the  day 
Nero  took  the  toga  virilis  (51)  ;  at  Apamea  in  Phrygia,  53  ;  in  Laodicea 
in  Campania,  60  (Tacitus,  Annales,  xiv.  27;  xv.  22,  etc.).  In  order  to 
reassure  his  trembling  friends  Seneca  could  find  nothing  better  to  urge 
than  that  it  was  the  common  lot :  "  How  many  towns  in  Asia  and  Aehaia 
have  fallen  under  the  same  blow  !  How  many  cities  of  Syria  and  Mace- 
donia have  been  swallowed  up  !  And  in  the  Island  of  Cyprus  what  rav- 
ages are  to  be  seen  !  How  many  times  has  Paphos  been  shaken  to  the 
depths!  How  often  we  are  told  of  entire  cities  having  disappeared!" 
(Seneca,  Epist.  xci.  9.     This  letter  was  written  in  58. ) 

-  Tacitus,  Annales,  xv.  44. 

8  "Genus  hominum  superstitionis  novre  et  maleficoe "  (Suetonius,  Nero, 
16).  "  Exitiabilis  superstitio  .  .  .  multitudo  ingens  odio  generis  lmmani 
convicti  sunt  "  (Tacitus,  Annales,  xv.  44).  When  S.  Paul  presented  him- 
self before  the  synagogue  of  Eome  the  Jews  said  to  him:  "  We  know  only 
one  thing  concerning  this  sect,  to  wit,  that  it  is  gainsaid  in  every  place" 
(Acts  xxviii.  22). 

4  Josephus,  Bellum  Juda'icum,  iv.  6.  3. 

5  "Jerusalem  has  been  twice  besieged  in  these  times  :  first  by  Cestius, 
Governor  of  Syria  (68)  ;  the  second  time  by  Titus,  four  years  afterwards. 
.  .  .  In  the  last-named  siege  there  were  no  means  of  saving  oneself; 
Titus  pressed  the  attack  with  too  much  warmth  ;  .  .  .  but  there  was  noth- 
ing like  this  in  the  siege  of  Cestius  ;  he  was  encamped  some  fifty  stadia, 
or  in  other  words  six  miles,  from  Jerusalem.  .  .  .  And  this  was  when  it 
behoved  them  to  depart ;  this  was  the  signal  which  the  Son  of  God  pave 
to  His  own.  Thus  then  He  has  most  clearly  distinguished  between  these 
two  sieges,  —  one  in  which  the  town  was  to  be  surrounded  by  ditches  and 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  207 

the  seat  of  their  tyranny.  Not  content  with  filling  the 
courts  with  combats  and  bloodshed,  they  mimicked  the 
sacred  functions  and  drew  lots  for  a  Sovereign  Pontiff. 
Chance  chose  for  them  a  countryman,  not  even  of  the 
tribe  of  Levi ;  this  fellow  they  invested  with  the  ephod, 
and,  before  the  eyes  of  the  weeping  priests,  forced  him  to 
go  through  the  sacred  rites.1 

Thus  was  "the  abomination  of  desolation"  introduced 
into  the  Holy  Place.  At  this  unmistakable  token  the  dis- 
ciples took  to  flight,  before  John  of  Giskala  closed  the  gates 
of  Jerusalem,2  and  the  robber-hordes,  camping  round  about, 
began  to  massacre  the  fugitives,  —  before  Titus,  wheeling  up 
his  troops  in  haste,  had  hedged  the  doomed  city  about,  to 
make  it  the  tomb  of  Judea.  From  their  hiding  places  over 
beyond  Jordan  they  beheld  afar  off  "  the  great  Wrath  "  3 
falling  upon  Jerusalem,  and  in  the  frightful  sacking  of  the 
town  saw  the  fulfilment  of  the  desolation  predicted  by 
Jesus,  "so  great  that  never  since  the  beginning  of  the 
world  unto  this  present  hath  there  ever  been,  nor  ever  shall 
be,  aught  like  unto  it." 4  In  a  season  of  seven  months 
more  than  ten  hundred  thousand  men  perished,  and  that 
which  came  not  "under  the  edge  of  the  sword,  was  led 
away  captive  by  all  the  nations."  "  Not  a  man  would  have 
been  saved  if  the  days  "  of  the  siege  "  had  not  been  short- 
ened ;  this  was  done  for  love  of  the  Elect,"  and  under  cir- 
cumstances which  clearly  betrayed  the  hand  of  God.  In 
fact,  their  preparations  for  the  defence  were  neglected,  their 
provisions  were  destroyed,  and  the  arrival  of  the  Eomans 
was  so  unlooked  for  that  the  Jews  forthwith  abandoned  a 
part  of  their  defences.5     Taking  Titus'  own  avowal,  God 

fortifications  (Luke  xix.  43),  when  there  would  be  no  hope  but  death  for 
those  shut  up  within  its  gates  ;  in  the  other  it  would  be  merely  encircled 
by  the  army  (Luke  xxi.  20),  and  invested  rather  than  formally  besieged  ; 
and  this  was  when  it  behoved  them  to  fly  and  seek  shelter  in  the  moun- 
tains" (Bossuet,  Discours  sur  VMstoire  universellc,  iie  partie,  chap,  xxii.), 

1  Josephus,  Bellum  Juclaicum,  iv.  3,  8. 

2  Eusebius,  iii.  5.     S.  Epiphanius,  xxix.  7. 

3  Luke  xxi.  23. 

4  Matt.  xxiv.  21.  "  Never  did  any  people,"  says  Josephus,  "  since  the 
beginning  of  the  world,  behold  so  many  calamities  conjoined  with  so  many 
crimes"  (Josephus,  Bellum  Juclaicum,  v.  10,  5). 

6  Josephus,  Bellum  Juclaicum,  y.  1,  5  ;  vi.  8,  4. 


208  HOLY   WEEK. 

Himself  made  war  on  the  side  of  the  besiegers  and  beat 
back  the  Jews  from  their  impregnable  ramparts.1 

According  to  this  description,  borrowed  from  profane 
annals,  it  is  evident  that  not  one  detail  in  the  Master's 
Prophecy  remained  without  its  actual  fulfilment.  To  this 
He  added  that  Jerusalem  should  be  trampled  under  foot 
by  the  Gentiles,  even  until  the  time  of  the  nations  be  ac- 
complished;2 hereby  foretelling  what  we  have  witnessed 
for  now  eighteen  centuries,  —  that  all  peoples  shall  suc- 
cessively enter  the  Church  ;  and  then  only,  when  the  sal- 
vation of  the  Gentiles  is  consummated,  shall  the  remnant 
of  Israel  be  saved  in  their  turn. 

Thereafter  shall  come  that  end  of  the  world  here  pre- 
dicted by  Jesus,3  when  the  gray  old  earth's  enticements 
have  worked  their  last  charms,  and  the  stars  are  veiled 
from  sight,  men  pining  away  with  anguish  at  the  clamor  of 
the  sea  and  its  hoary  floods;  the  powers  of  heaven  shaken 
from  their  spheres  ;  the  Cross,  the  Sign  of  the  Son  of  Man, 
appearing  in  the  sky;  the  Christ  Himself  descending  upon 
the  clouds  in  great  power  and  majesty  ;  all  humankind 
awakened  by  the  Angel's  trumpeting  ;  dark  hosts  of  eagles, 
the  avengers  of  God,  falling  upon  the  sinful  world  as  upon 
an  abandoned  carcass ;  and  all  this  vast  scene  of  terror 
shall  be  unrolled  before  our  sight  more  swiftly  than  the 
bright  thunderbolt  from  heaven. 

After  this  manner  shall  come  the  last  moments  of  the 
universe.  Jesus  indicated  all  the  signs  which  are  to  pro 
claim  its  presence,  as  plainly  "as  the  fig-tree's  leafage 
marks  the  coming  of  the  summer;"4  but,  far  from  fixing 
the  da}*  and  the  hour,  He  declared  that  neither  the  Angels 
in  Heaven,  nor  the  Son,  in  so  far  as  He  is  Man,6  knew 
aught  thereof;  it  is  to  remain  a  secret  with  the  Father, 

1  Josephus,  Bell  inn  Jiulalcum,  vi.  9,  1. 

2  Luke  xxi.  34. 

8  Luke  xxi.  25-33  ;  Matt,  xxiv.  23-35. 

4  Luke  xxi.  29,  30. 

0  Matt.  xxiv.  36.  Jesus  knew  this  hour,  because  He  is  Ood,  and  all 
the  treasures  of  science  ami  wisdom  arc  in  Him  (Coll.  ii.  3).  Bu1  hail 
He  been  but  a  mere  man,  howsoever  perfect  His  nature  and  His  intelli- 
gence, He  would  have  been  ignorant  of  this  secret,  as  well  as  were  the 
Angels. 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  209 

The  Jewish  race x  is  not  to  end  before  these  tilings  happen, 
and  as  for  the  Christians,  their  first  duty  is  to  live  in  ex- 
pectation of  the  Judgment,  —  conceiving  no  anxiety  at  the 
thought,  but  with  serene  and  confident  glance  scanning  the 
horizon  of  time  in  readiness  to  receive  these  forerunners  of 
redemption. 

"Take  heed,"  He  charged  them;2  "watch  and  pray;  for 
you  know  not  when  is  the  time.  It  shall  be  then  even  as 
when  a  man  is  about  to  make  a  far  journey,  and  leaves  the 
care  of  his  household  to  his  servants,  appointing  for  each 
what  he  must  do,  and  bidding  the  gatekeeper  be  vigilant. 
Watch  ye,  therefore,  for  you  know  not  when  the  Master 
will  come,  —  if  it  shall  be  at  even,  or  at  midnight,  whether 
at  cock-crow,  or  in  the  morning,  — for  fear  lest,  coming  sud- 
denly, He  find  you  sleeping.  And  this  which  I  say  unto 
you,  I  say  to  all :  '  Watch  ! '  " 

This,  then,  was  the  fruit  which  Christians  must  needs 
gather  from  the  Prophecy  of  Jesus.  Therefore  it  was  that 
He  spoke  so  much  at  length  of  vigilance,  multiplying  com- 
parisons and  parables  in  order  to  better  inculcate  this  first 
requisite. 

"  Those  days  shall  be  like  unto  the  days  of  Noe,  when  all 
men  were  eating,  drinking,  marrying  wives,  and  straightway 
the  Deluge  swallowed  them  up,"  3  "  as  the  springe  snaps 
upon  the  bird,"  or  "as  the  lightning  rends  the  thunder- 
cloud-." 4  Besides  these  images,  He  repeated  similitudes 
delivered  in  former  times,  but  hitherto  only  as  if  to  remind 
them  that  it  wras  their  duty  to  watch  and  see  that  His  word 
bore  fruit ;  one  was  the  Parable  of  a  steward  overtaken  in 
his  evil-doing,  the  other  that  of  the  talent  concealed  by  an 
idle  servant.5    But  none  touched  the  Apostles  more  keenly 


1  'H  yevea  avr-q,  which  we  read  in  all  three  of  the  Synoptic  "Writers, 
must  signify  here  the  Jewish  nation.  Teved,  in  fact,  in  Hellenistic  Greek 
has  not  only  the  meaning  of  generation  hut  that  of  race  ;  now  the  context 
shows  plainly  that  this  second  sense  ought  to  be  preferred. 

2  .Mark  xiii.  33-37. 

3  Matt.  xxiv.  37-39. 

4  Luke  xxi.  35  ;  Matt.  xxiv.  27. 

5  Matt.  xxiv.  43-51,  xxv.  14-30.  From  the  evidence  of  S.  Lnke  we 
find  the  first  of  these  parables  was  delivered  by  the  Lord  in  Perea  (Luke 

VOL.   II.  —  14 


210  HOLY   WEEK. 

than  the  Parable  of  the  Virgins,  which  He  uttered  now  for 
the  first  time.1 

It  pictured  the  marriage  merry-makings  and  the  ten 
virgins,  companions  of  the  bride,  marching  in  the  nuptial 
procession.  At  eventide  these  girls  betake  themselves  to 
the  home  of  the  betrothed  maiden ;  but  five  of  them  are 
prudent,  five  foolish.  Now  the  latter,  seeing  their  lamps 
still  burning,  do  not  remember  that  they  will  shortly  flicker 
and  become  exhausted,  and  so  they  neglect  to  procure  their 
portion  of  oil.  In  the  middle  of  the  night  the  distant 
shout  is  heard  :  — 

"  Behold  the  bridegroom  !     Go  ye  forth  to  greet  him  ! " 

The  ten  virgins  rise  up,  and  proceed  to  make  ready  their 
lamps. 

"  Give  us  of  your  oil,"  say  the  foolish  to  the  wise, 
"  because  our  lamps  are  gone  out." 

And  the  wise  answer :  — 

"  For  fear  that  there  be  not  enough  for  us  and  for  you, 
go  rather  to  them  that  sell,  and  buy  therefrom." 

While  they  are  gone  awa}r  the  bridegroom  comes. 
Those  that  are  ready  go  in  with  him  to  the  marriage, 
and  the  door  is  shut.  Not  long  after  come  the  other 
virgins,  saying  likewise  :  — 

"  Lord  !  Lord  !  open  to  us." 

And  he  answered  them  :  — 

"  Of  a  truth,  I  say  unto  you,  I  know  you  not." 

"  Watch  then,"  the  Master  concluded,  "  for  you  know 
neither  the  day  nor  the  hour." 

Then  reverting  to  the  Prophecy  which  He  had  thus  in- 
terrupted, He  completed  it  by  setting  before  them  the 
scene  of  the  last  Judgment.2 

In  presence  of  the  celestial  King,  seated  upon  the  throne 
of  His  majesty  and  encircled  by  Angels,  all  nations  of 
earth  shall  be  assembled  together,  and  He  shall  separate 
them  one  from  another,  even  as  a  shepherd  separates  the 

xii.  42-46),  the  second  in  the  house  of  Zacheus  the  publican  (Luke  xix. 
11-28).     (See  vol.  ii.,  pp.  94  and  156.) 

1  Matt.  xxv.  1-13. 

2  Matt.  xxv.  31-46. 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  211 

sheep  from  the  goats,  —  the  sheep  on  his  right  hand,  the 
goats  on  his  left.  Then  shall  the  former  be  gladdened  by 
His  loving  words  :  — 

"  Come,  you  blessed  of  My  Father,  come  hither  and  pos- 
sess the  Kingdom  which  hath  been  prepared  for  you  before 
the  foundation  of  the  world." 

Aud  even  at  the  same  moment  His  malediction  shall 
fall  upon  the  goats  :  — 

"  Depart  from  Me,  you  cursed,  into  that  everlasting  fire 
which  hath  been  prepared  for  the  Devil  and  his  Spirits." 

Then  shall  there  arise  between  Heaven  and  Earth  a 
solemn  converse.  God  Himself  shall  disclose  the  glory  of 
His  Elect. 

"  I  was  hungry,"  He  shall  tell  them,  "  and  you  gave  Me 
to  eat ;  I  was  thirsty  and  you  gave  Me  to  drink ;  I  was 
homeless  and  you  gave  Me  shelter ;  I  was  naked  and  you 
clothed  Me ;  1  was  sick  and  you  visited  Me ;  in  prison  and 
you  came  to  Me." 

Overwhelmed  by  such  praises  and  feeling  that  grace 
alone  has  been  all-powerful  in  them,  the  righteous,  in  their 
humility,  shall  cast  about  how  to  esteem  this  their  great 
merit. 

"  Lord,"  they  shall  say,  "  when  did  we  ever  see  Thee 
hungry,  and  when  did  we   ever  give  Thee  food  ? " 

"  Of  a  truth,"  saith  the  Great  King,  "  each  time  that  you 
did  it  unto  one  of  the  very  least  of  My  brethren  you  did  it 
unto  Me." 

And  the  just  shall  go  into  eternal  life  and  the  damned 
into  punishment  eternal. 

Thereupon  Jesus  brought  his  long  discourse  to  a  close. 

"  You  kuow,"  He  said,  "  that  the  Passover  takes  place  in 
two  days,1  and  that  the  Son  of  Man  shall  be  delivered  up 
to  be  crucified." 

By  these  words  He  recalled  His  disciples'  minds  to 
what  was  being  plotted  against  Him  at  that  very  hour  in 
Jerusalem.      In  fact  the  departure  of  the  Christ  had  left 

1  Matt.  xxvi.  1.  It  was  on  Tuesday  evening  that  Jesus  uttered  this 
prediction,  at  the  hour  when  the  sun  was  just  sinking  to  the  horizon,  and 
so  was  ushering  in  Holy  Wednesday,  the  second  day  before  the  Tasch. 


212  HOLY   WEEK. 

the  field  free  to  His  vanquished  and  humiliated  foes;  they 
could  not  wait  for  the  morrow  to  deliberate  upon  their 
schemes  of  vengeance.  Pharisees,  Sadducees,  Priests, 
Scribes,  Ancients  of  the  people,1  all  were  resolved  that 
this  audacious  man,  who  had  made  an  open  show  of 
their  shame,  and  was  a  perpetual  menace  to  their 
peaceful  relations  with  Eome,  should  be  cut  off  from 
Israel. 

To  the  south  of  Mount  Sion  rose  a  large  palace,  the 
residence  of  the  High-Priests ;  it  was  there  that  the  ene- 
mies of  Jesus  held  their  assembly  and  Ca'iphas  presided 
over  their  deliberations.  The  Pharisees  brought  with  them 
all  their  habitual  fanaticism,  the  Pontiffs  evidenced  their 
contempt  for  all  belief  in  spiritual  things,  while  Herod's 
courtiers  only  hoped  to  further  their  own  political  schemes. 
The  resolution  passed  was  worthy  of  such  a  council.  Out 
of  fear  of  the  populace  they  decided  to  temporize  until  just 
after  the  festival  ceremonies  were  completed,  and  then 
seizing  the  Christ  of  a  sudden,  to  put  Him  to  death ;  but 
an  unforeseen  incident  altered  these  first  plans  and  precipi- 
tated events. 

Judas  had  not  followed  Jesus  up  the  Mount  of  Olives ; 
lingering  in  the  porches  he  overheard  a  group  of  Temple- 
guards  2  discussing  how  they  might  manage  to  arrest  this 
troublesome  Reformer,  Who  was  powerful  enough  to  hold 
in  check  the  princes  of  the  people. 

"  What  will  you  give  me,"  he  asked  them,  "  and  I  will 
deliver  Him  unto  you  ? " 

They  recognized  him  as  one  of  the  Twelve  who  accom- 
panied the  Nazarene,  and  they  at  once  proceeded  to  report 
tli is  proposition  to  the  Sanhedrin  members.3 

The  latter  welcomed  the  idea  with  great  joy.  Judas, 
immediately  introduced  into  their  meeting,  confirmed  his 
offer,  extending  his  hand  to  receive  the  wages  of  his  crime. 
He  was  treated  indeed  like  a  common  huckster,  for  the 
Jews,  after  much  haggling  over  the  sum,  only  allotted  him 

1  Matt.  xxvi.  3-5. 

2  Luke  xxii.  4.     ~Zvve\a\7]<jev  roh  .   .   .  ffrpaT-qr/ott. 
8  Matt.  xxvi.  14-16  j  Mark.  xiv.  10,  11. 


THE  LAST  PROPHECIES.  213 

thirty  shekels,1  which  was  but  the  price  of  a  slave.  Piti- 
ful as  this  sum  seemed,  the  Apostle  seized  it.  From  that 
moment,  says  Saint  Luke,2  "  Satan  entered  into  him." 
Two  days  later  Judas  betrayed  his  God. 

1  The  weight  of  the  shekel  was  equivalent  to  six  grams,  and  the  gold 
it  contained  about  twenty-four  cents  ;  but  in  the  time  of  Jesus,  as  the 
Jews  made  use  of  Greek  money,  the  shekel  of  which  mention  is  made  in 
the  New  Testament  weighed  fifteen  grams  fifty-six  centigrams,  and 
was  worth  about  sixty-two  cents.  The  thirty  shekels  given  Judas  was 
something  near  $18.60  (see  Saigey,  Traile  de  me'trologie,  pp.  27  et  55). 

2  Luke  xxii.  3. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   LAST   SUPPER. 

I.    Judaic  Ritual  of  the  Passover. 

Before  recounting  the  doings  at  that  evening  meal, 
when  Jesus  celebrated  the  Pasch  for  the  last  time,  it  is 
quite  important  to  recall  its  symbolic  rites ;  for  the  Saviour 
made  such  frequent  allusions  to  them  that  His  voids 
scarcely  can  be  comprehended  by  the  reader  who  is  not 
initiated  into  the  customs  of  the  Hebrew  people. 

"  Israel's  Great  Festival "  was  now  no  longer  distin- 
guished by  the  simplicity  of  earlier  ages.  We  should 
search  in  vain  for  the  Jewish  household,  all  standing, 
with  staff  in  hand,  loins  girded  and  sandals  upon  their 
feet,  eating  in  haste  the  lamb  garnished  with  bitter  herbs, 
and  the  unleavened  bread.  Had  these  olden  customs  been 
altered  even  before  the  Captivity  ?  Or  did  the  change  take 
place  only  during  the  Jews'  sojourn  in  Babylon  ?  This  we 
do  not  know ;  still  we  cannot  doubt  but  that  the  new 
Schools  of  the  Scribes,  which  became  so  numerous  after 
the  return  to  Jerusalem,  must  have  exercised  as  profound 
an  influence  upon  the  rubric  of  the  Paschal  Supper  as  they 
did  upon  very  many  other  Mosaic  institutions.  Under 
color  of  reviving  ancient  usages  they  really  disfigured  them, 
and  transformed  them  into  inflexible  rules.  It  is  to  this 
narrow  formalism,  exemplified  in  the  Talmud  and  its  com- 
mentaries, that  we  must  refer  to-day  for  a  representation 
of  the  Passover  as  Jesus  celebrated  it. 


JUDAIC  RITUAL   OF  THE  PASSOVER.  215 

On  the  evening  of  the  fourteenth  day  of  Nisan  the 
different  families  gather  together  to  partake  of  the  legal 
repast.  The  lamb  baked  in  the  furnace  must  preserve 
a  form  whose  prophetic  significance  was  manifest.  It 
was  attached  to  two  branches  of  pomegranate,  whose 
wood  is  less  sensitive  than  any  other  to  the  action 
of  heat;1  one  of  the  branches  penetrated  the  whole 
length  of  the  creature,  while  the  other,  shorter  than 
the  first,  fixed  the  front  feet,  which  were  stretched 
out  in  form  of  a  Cross.2  These  preparations  were 
the  object  of  scrupulous  precaution,  for  they  must  needs 
beware  of  breaking  one  of  its  bones;3  the  least  infrac- 
tion of  this  law  was  punished  by  forty  blows  from  a 
thong.4 

At  nightfall  the  guests,  whose  number  varied  from  ten 

©  ©  ' 

to  twenty,5  bestowed  themselves  upon  couches  slightly 
raised  from  the  floor,  the  left  arm  supported  upon  a  cush- 
ion, the  right  hand  free  to  reach  the  food.  To  lie  at  ease 
during  their  meal  was  the  distinctive  privilege  of  all  free- 
men ;  hence  it  was  fitting  that  upon  the  anniversary  of 
that  great  deliverance  Israel  should  comport  itself  as  a 
people  unenthrailed  by  any  servitude. 

The  father  of  the  household  first  took  up  a  cup  of  wine 
mingled  with  a  little  water. 

"  Blessed  be  the  Lord,"  he  said,  "  Who  hath  created  the 
fruit  of  the  vine  !" 

Whereupon  each  guest,  in  his  turn,  drank  from  this  cup. 
Undoubtedly  this  was  the  same  cup  which  Saint  Luke 
speaks  of  as  blessed  by  Jesus  at  the  beginning  of  the  Last 
Supper.6 

A  basin  full  of  water  and  a  napkin  were  passed  around 
the  assembly  immediately  afterward,  that  all  might  purify 
their  hands ;  the  washing  of  the  feet  narrated  by  Saint 
John  is  probably  connected  with  this  rite.     When  these 

1  Maimonides,  Pesachim,  vii.  1. 

2  S.  Justin,  Dialogus  cum  Tryphone,  30. 

3  Exod.  xii.  46. 

4  Pesachim,  vii.  11. 

5  Megilla,  iv.  3.     Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  vi.  9,  3. 

6  Luke  xxii.  17. 


216  HOLY  WEEK. 

ablutions  were  completed  each  one  took  his  place  at  the 
table  among  the  rest  of  the  guests. 

The  board  was  .spread  with  sundry  dishes;  at  one  side 
of  the  Lamb  were  set  bitter  herbs,  such  as  cresses  and 
parsley,  iu  remembrance  of  the  sorrows  of  Egypt;1  then 
the  azyme-bread,  thin  and  tasteless,  like  the  paste  which 
the  yeast  had  not  time  to  leaven  before  the  precipitate 
flight  of  Israel.2  One  last  symbolic  dish  completed  the 
repast ;  it  was  called  the  Charoseth,  a  compound  of  various 
fruits,  —  apples,  figs,  and  citrons,  —  cooked  in  vinegar ;  by 
the  use  of  cinnamon  and  other  spices  they  gave  it  a  ruddy 
tint  like  that  of  bricks ;  this  color,  together  with  its  long, 
flat  shape,  recalled  to  their  minds  the  mortar-pits  of  Phi- 
thom  and  Eamases.3  Often  they  added  several  viands  pre- 
pared and  blessed  at  the  same  time  as  the  Lamb ;  these 
were,  according  to  the  commandment  set  down  in  Deuter- 
onomy,4 a  young  kid  or  a  sheep  roasted,  which  later  on 
became  the  Chagigah ; 5  but  generally  they  reserved  this 
sacrifice  for  the  fifteenth  of  Nisan  and  the  days  following. 
The  master  of  the  house,  as  soon  as  the  food  was  put  before 
him,  took  the  herbs,  dipped  them  in  the  Charoseth,  while 
thanking  God  for  having  created  the  good  things  of  earth, 
whereupon  all  ate  thereof  a  portion  not  less  than  the  size 
of  an  olive. 

A  second  cup  was  then  poured  out,  and  the  youngest 
of  the  company  requested  the  father  of  the  family  for  an 
explanation  of  these  rites.  The  latter,  to  lend  a  more  sol- 
emn significance  to  his  response,  lifted  up  in  succession 
before  the  eyes  of  all  the  different  dishes  forming  their 
repast,  and  while  so  doing  recalled  what  memories  of  past 
times  were  attached  to  each, —  the  Lamb,  immolated  to 
turn  away  Heaven's  anger,  whereat  the  Angel  of  Death 

1  Maimonides,  Dc  Fermento  et  Azymo. 

2  Eitto,  Cyclopaedia:  Passover. 

8  Maimonides,  Pesaehim,  vii.  11;  Exod.  i.  11.  We  know  that  the 
Israelites  were  obliged  to  mould  the  bricks  of  clay  which  were  used  in  the 
building  of  these  two  cities  (Vigouroux,  La  Bible  ct  les  De'eouvcrtes  modernes, 
t.  ii.  p.  227). 

4  Dent,  xvi.  2. 

6  nrjn,  from  Jjn,  to  feast  (see  Chagigah,  i.  6  ;  Pesaehim,  vi.  3). 


JUDAIC  RITUAL   OF  THE  PASSOVER.  2Y1 

passed  1  over  Israel  without  striking  their  first-born ;  the 
bread  of  anguish,  eaten  during  the  terrors  of  their  flight;2 
the  herbs,  bitter  as  the  slavery  from  which  they  had  come 
forth  triumphant. 

"  And  for  such  wonders  as  these,"  he  added,  "  it  be- 
hoveth  us  to  praise  and  exalt  Him  Who  hath  changed  our 
weeping  into  gladness,  our  darkness  into  light ;  unto  Him 
alone  doth  it  behove  us  to  sing  '  Alleluia ! '  " 

Then  at  once  the  whole  company  entoned  the  Hallel  ;3 — - 

"  Sing  praises,  0  ye  servants  of  Jehovah 

praise  ye  the  Name  of  your  God  ! 
Blessed  be  the  Name  of  the  Lord 

from  this  time  forth  and  forevermore. 
From  the  rising  unto  the  setting  of  the  Sun 

the  Lord's  Name  is  to  be  praised  ! " 

So  they  continued  on  to  the  end  of  the  following  Psalm, 
chanting  their  song  of  triumph  over  the  deliverance  out  of 
Egypt : — 

1  Pasch,  Trdaxa,  from  Nnp3,  Ararnean  form  of  trie  Hebrew  nD3,  The 
Passage.  The  meaning  of  this  word  is  given  by  Moses  himself :  "When 
your  sons  shall  ask  you,  What  is  this  rite  ?  you  shall  tell  them  :  'T  is 
the  Victim  of  the  passing-by  of  the  Lord,  when  in  Egypt  He  passed  over 
the  sons  of  Israel,  striking  the  Egyptians  but  sparing  our  abodes  "  (Exod. 
xii.  26,  27). 

2  Deut.  xvi.  3. 

8  The  Hallel,  7  7(1,  "  Praise,"  is  the  name  given  to  a  series  of  psalms 
beginning  with  this  glad  acclamation,  rv~l77n,  Halleluia  :  Praise  Jeho- 
vah (Psalms  cxii.-cxviii.  in  the  Hebrew,  cxii.-cxvii.  in  the  Vulgate).  It 
was  sung  upon  the  Feasts  of  Pentecost,  the  Tabernacles,  and  the  Dedica- 
tion, but  more  especially  upon  the  Passover;  hence  it  got  the  name  of 
the  Egyptian  Hallel  to  distinguish  it  from  the  Grand  Hallel,  Psnlms 
cxviii.-cxxxvi.  (see  Maimonides,  Jacl  Hachezaka  Hilcho/h  Chamcz,  viii.  10). 
Though  chanted  in  the  Temple  during  the  immolation  of  the  lamb,  these 
psalms  were  repeated  in  the  evening  by  each  family  during  the  Paschal 
Meal.  This  time  it  was  divided  into  two  parts,  the  first  comprising 
Psalms  cxiii.  and  cxiv.  according  to  the  Hebrew,  —  that  is,  the  Laicdatc, 
pueri,  Dominum  of  the  Vulgate,  and  the  In  Exitu  as  far  as  Non  nobis, 
Domine,  non  nobis.  The  second  part  was  reserved  for  the  close  of  the  re- 
past after  the  lamb  was  eaten.  It  included  Psalms  cxv.-cxviii.  according 
to  the  Hebrew;  in  the  Vulgate,  cxiii.  from  Non  nobis,  Domine;  cxiv. 
Dilexi  quoniam  exaudiet  Domimis  ;  cxv.  Credidi  propter  quod  locutus  sum; 
cxvi.  Laudate  Dominum  omnes  gentes ;  cxvii.  Confitemini  Domino. 


218  HOLY    WEEK. 

"  0  Sea,  wherefore  didst  thou  flee  away  1 

and  thou,  Jordan,  wherefore  turn  backward? 
Ye  Mountains,  wherefore  skip  like  kids'? 

and  you,  little  Hills,  like  young  lambkins? 
In  the  Presence  of  the  Lord,  tremble,  0  Earth, 

in  the  presence  of  the  God  of  Jacob. 
For  He  changeth  the  rocks  into  fountains, 

and  the  stones  into  springs  of  living  water  !  " 

During  these  canticles  of  joy  they  drank  the  second  cup. 
The  father  of  the  family  then  took  the  azynie-cakes  and 
broke  them  before  blessing  and  distributing  them.  In 
order  that  all  might  recollect  that  this  was  the  bread  of 
sorrowfulness  no  one  might  eat  more  than  a  morsel,  along 
with  a  few  herbs,  and  soaked  in  the  Charoseth.  Then 
came  the  time  for  the  Lamb ;  when  once  carved  and  dis- 
tributed to  each  guest  it  must  needs  disappear  entirely, 
and  no  other  meats  were  served  up  thereafter. 

Then  the  father  of  the  household  poured  out  a  third 
cup,  —  the  Chalice  of  Benediction,1  —  and  this  probably 
was  that  which  the  Christ  changed  into  the  Blood  Divine. 
So  soon  as  ever  it  was  drunk  they  intoned  the  final  hymns 
of  the  Hallel,  wherein  their  grateful  hearts  burst  forth  into 
transports  of  joy  :  — 

"  Not  unto  us,  Lord,  not  unto  us, 

unto  thy  Name  belongeth  glory, 

0  source  of  Mercy  and  Truth  ! 
Now  let  the  Nations  come  unto  us,  saying  : 

'  Where  is  your  God  ? ' 
Our  God  is  in  the  heavens  : 

that  which  He  willeth  that  doeth  He. 

Then  what  shall  I  render  unto  Jehovah 

for  all  his  benefits? 
I  Avill  lift  up  this  Cup  of  Salvation, 

and  I  will  invoke  His  Name. 
Yea,  I  am  Thy  slave,  Jehovah, 

Thy  slave  and  the  son  of  Thine  handmaid. 

1  Tii  regard  to  this  Cup  of  Benediction  see  Lightfoot,  Horn:  Hcbra'ioK, 
in  Matt.  xxvi.  27. 


THE  FEAST  OF  THE  PASSOVER.  219 

Thou  hast  broken  my  chains  in  pieces  : 
to  Thee  will  I  offer  a  sacrifice  of  praise, 
praising  I  will  call  on  the  Name  of  the  Lord ! " 

Then  appealing  to  the  whole  world,  Israel,  in  a  holy 
ecstasy,  endeavors  to  entice  them  all  unto  the  service  of 
the  true  God  :  — 

"0  all  ye  Peoples,  praise  ye  Jehovah  : 

ye  Nations,  exalt  His  Name ! 
For  His  Love  is  mighty  amongst  us, 

and  the  Truth  of  Jehovah  endureth  forever ! 
Alleluia ! " 

A  fourth  cup  hereupon  passed  from  hand  to  hand  and 
marked  the  end  of  the  repast. 

Such  was  the  Jewish  Passover  when  Jesus  celebrated  it 
for  the  last  time.1  With  this  description  before  our  minds 
it  will  be  easy  for  us  to  supply  what  is  omitted  in  the 
Evangelist's  narrative,  while,  too,  by  this  means  we  may 
decipher  the  allusions  and  understand  the  transformation 
of  this  Figurative  Eite  into  that  holiest  function  of  religi- 
ous worship, —  the  most  Holy  Mystery  of  the  Mass. 

II.    The  Feast  of  the  Passover. 

Matt.  xxvi.  17-25  ;   Mark  xiv.  12-21  ;   Luke  xvii.  7-18  ;  John  xiii.  1-22. 

All  during  Wednesday  Jesus  had  not  appeared  either  in 
the  Temple  or  in  Jerusalem.  On  the  morning  of  Thursday 
the  Apostles  inquired  of  Him  whereabouts  they  were  to 
eat  the  Paschal  Supper,  for  "  they  were  now  in  the  First 
Day  of  Azymes."  2 

Leaving  Judas  unnoticed,  though  ordinarily  He  was  the 
one  entrusted  with  the  care  of  their  larder,  the  Saviour 
called  Peter  and  John.3 

"  Go,"  He  told  them,  "  and  prepare  what  is  necessary." 

1  For  the  details  of  the  Passover  see  Mischna,  Tesachim,  and  the  com« 
mentaries  of  Maimonides. 
a  Matt.  xxvi.  17. 
8  Luke  xxii.  8. 


220  HOLY   WEEK. 

"  Where  will  you  have  us  make  it  ready  ? "  inquired  the 
disciples;  for  they  knew  that  Jerusalem  was  rife  with 
danger  fur  them. 

"  Go  into  the  city,"  Jesus  replied  \l  "  as  you  are  entering 
you  shall  meet  a  man  carrying  a  jar  of  water;  you  will 
follow  him,  and  on  reaching  the  house  whither  he  shall  go 
you  will  say  to  the  master  of  the  dwelling  :  — 

"  '  Lo,  thus  sr.yeth  our  Master : 2  Mine  hour  is  close  at 
hand,  and  I  am  to  keep  the  Pasch  with  My  disciples  at 
thine  abode.  Where  is  the  room3  where  I  may  eat  the 
Passover  ? '  Then  he  himself  shall  show  you  a  large  upper 
room,4  furnished  with  couches  and  arranged  beforehand. 
There  do  you  prepare  all  things  needful." 

Peter  and  John  obeyed ;  at  the  city  gates  they  met  a 
man  who  was  coming  up  with  some  water  drawn  from  the 
Fountain  of  Siloe,  and  following  in  his  footsteps  they  found 
the  householder  described  to  them.  It  was  some  disciple 
of  the  Lord,  hitherto  unknown  to  the  Apostles.5  Finding 
Himself  constrained  to  prepare  for  the  event  of  the  Pass- 
over, the  Saviour  had  warned  this  friend  to  hold  his  resi- 
dence in  readiness  for  His  coming. 

Once  consecrated  by  the  Eucharistic  Sacrifice,  this  "Up- 
per Chamber  "  was  ever  dear  to  the  new-born  Church,  which 

1  Mark  xiv.  13-16  ;  Matt.  xxvi.  18. 

2  The  Syriac  and  Persian  Versions  so  translate  the  term  6  diSacrxaXos. 

8  Ka.T&\vfja,  "  hospitium,"  the  apartment  reserved  for  guests,  corre- 
sponding to  the  Hebrew  N  /D.  The  Vulgate  translates  it  in  S.  Mark  : 
"  Ubi  est  refectio  mea?"  "Where  shall  I  eat  with  My  disciples?"  and 
in  S.  Luke  by  "Ubi  est  diversorium  ?"  "  Diversorium  :  locus  in  quern, 
nun  habitandi,  sed  ad  tempus,  commorandi  causa,  divertimus  "  (Forcel- 
lini,  Lexicon). 

i'Avdyaioi'  (which  is  generally  given  under  the  form  avwyaiov  ;  &vw, 
yaia,  something  raised  above  the  earth)  means  the  upper  story  of  a  house, 

and  should  not  be  confounded  with  vwepwov,   7\\iy,  the  terrace  of  Eastern 
dwellings. 

5  Everything  points  to  this  conclusion,  both  the  tone  of  assurance  with 
which  Jesus  utters  His  message,  the  title  of  Master  used  by  Him,  and  the 
eagerness  of  the  host  to  comply  with  His  behests.  In  Passover-time  the 
houses  of  Jerusalem  ceased  (so  to  say)  to  be  considered  private  property, 
being  looked  upon  as  belonging  to  Jehovah.  And  so  during  the  festival 
season  hospitality  was  tendered  to  all  gratuitously  (Megilla,  21,  1  ;  Fried* 
lieb,  Archaologie  der  Leidcnsgeschichte,  p.  50). 


THE  FEAST  OF  THE  PASSOVER.  221 

found  a  first  shelter  under  its  roof.  Here  their  resurrected 
Lord  once  more  found  His  disciples  assembled  in  the  midst 
of  their  despondency  ;  hither  the  Apostles  also  betook  them- 
selves to  await  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  after  Saint  Peter  had 
been  delivered  by  the  Angel,  he  had  no  need  to  look  else- 
where for  his  brethren  at  the  hour  when  they  were  usually 
gathered  together  in  prayer.  To-day  the  traveller  coming 
toward  Jerusalem  from  the  south  descries  a  minaret  which 
still  marks  the  location  of  that  Guest-Chamber.  It  towers 
over  a  vast  hall 1  which,  although  much  altered  during  the 
Middle  Ages,  is  still  the  same  which  Saint  Cyril  of  Jeru- 
salem venerated  in  the  fourth  century,  and  which  Saint 
Epiphanius  pointed  out  as  one  of  the  few  edifices  spared  at 
the  time  of  the  demolishing  of  the  city. 

But  in  Jesus'  time  and  on  that  day  of  the  Pasch  it  was 
far  from  having  any  such  splendors  as  the  fanciful  pic- 
tures of  our  artists  have  decorated  it  withal.  What  we 
now  know  of  Jewish  dwellings  makes  us  imagine  it  as  a 
room  with  white  walls ;  in  the  centre  stands  a  low  table, 
embellished  with  bright  colors  and  with  one  side  left  free 
for  the  servers,  while  along  the  others  couches  are  arranged. 
This  was  the  general  disposition  of  the  dining-hall  on  the 
evening  Jesus  entered  it.  The  Twelve  followed  2  and  took 
their  places  about  Him.  John,  who  lay  at  His  right,  only 
needed  to  turn  His  head,  to  rest  it  upon  the  Master's  breast. 
Peter  was  near  the  beloved  disciple,  and  Judas  reposed  not 
far  from  Jesus.3 

The  hour  was  come,  and  the  heart  of  Jesus  was  thrilled 
with  gladness. 

1  According  to  Tobler's  measurements  (Topographic  ron  Jerusalem, 
Zweites  Buch,  99  ff.)  it  was  fifty  feet  long  by  thirty  in  width.  In  this 
author  (loco  citato)  will  be  found  the  principal  evidences  from  Tradition 
regarding  the  Supper-Room. 

2  Matt.  xxvi.  20.  The  arrangements  completed,  Peter  and  John  re- 
turned to  their  place  beside  their  Master,  for  we  see  them  entering  with 
Him  into  Jerusalem  (Mark  xiv.  17). 

3  Before  instituting  the  Eucharist  Jesus  said  plainly  to  Judas,  "Thou 
art  he  who  shall  betray  Me"  (Matt.  xxvi.  25),  and  nevertheless  we  see 
that  even  after  their  Communion  the  Apostles  were  still  ignorant  as  to  who 
was  to  commit  the  crime  (Luke  xxii.  23  ;  John  xiii.  24,  25).  We  must 
believe,  therefore,  that  the  Saviour  was  near  Judas,  and  warned  him  without 
being  heard  by  the  others  who  sat  at  table. 


222  HOLY  WEEK. 

"  With  a  great  desire  I  have  desired  to  eat  this  Passover 
with  you,"  He  said,  "  before  I  suffer."  1 

Nevertheless,  to  make  the  Apostles  comprehend  that  it 
was  no  figurative  rite  for  which  He  had  longed  so  keenly, 
but  rather,  indeed,  the  accomplishment  of  a  real  sacrifice 
in  the  Eucharist,  He  added :  — 

"  Of  a  truth,  I  say  unto  you  :  I  will  nevermore  eat  this 
Pasch  until  the  Mystery  thereof  be  fulfilled  in  the  King- 
dom of  God."2 

Meanwhile  the  cup  which  indicated  the  beginning  of 
the  repast  had  been  prepared.  Taking  it  from  the  hands 
of  His  disciples,  Jesus  pronounced  over  it  the  accustomed 
blessing,3  moistened  His  lips  therewith  even  as  the  master 
of  the  household  was  wont  to  do,  then  offered  it  to  His 
disciples. 

"  Take  and  divide  it  among  you,"  He  said,  "  but  as  for 
Me,  I  will  no  more  drink  of  the  fruit  of  the  vine  until  the 
Kingdom  of  God  cometh." 

Here  Jesus  was  not  so  much  speaking  of  the  Eucharist 
as  of  the  heavenly  blessedness,4  and  this  fruit  of  the  vine, 
which  He  must  never  more  drink  save  in  the  heavens,  was 
used  for  a  figure  of  that  felicity  for  which  the  Psalmist 
long  since  had  sighed  so  longingly :  — 

"  Ah,  how  lovely  is  my  Chalice, 

which  inebriateth  my  soul  !  "  6 

The  thought  of  that  eternal  Paschal-tide  could  not  absorb 
the  Saviour's  mind  so  far  as  to  make  Him  forget  those  He 
was  to  leave  upon  earth.     "  Knowing  that  His  hour  was 

1  Luke  xxii.  15,  16.  ~Ewi9v/xla  iweBifirtcra  corresponds  to  the  Hebraic 
phrase  ^bp.J  'fiSDD:  ;  the  infinitive  absolute  giving  more  energy  to  the 

thought. 

2  Above  and  beyond  the  Passover  of  the  New  Testament,  Jesus  already 
beheld  the  great  Paschal  Festival  of  Heaven,  for  He  proceeds  to  speak  of  it 
immediately  afterwards. 

8  Luke  xxii.  17,  18. 

4  "In  regno  Dei,  in  quo  perfectnm  est  paschale  convivium  et  gaudium 
nunquam  nniendum "  (Jansenius  of  Ghent,  Concordia  Evangclica,  cap. 
exxxi.). 

8  Ps.  xxii.  5 . 


THE  FEAST  OF  THE  PASSOVER.  223 

come,  that  He  should  pass  out  of  this  world  to  His  Father,1 
having  loved  His  own  who  were  in  the  world,  He  loved 
them  to  the  end,"  —  loved  them  even  to  excess,2  and  there- 
fore taxed  His  almighty  Attributes  for  one  last  miracle  of 
Charity  wherewith  forevermore  to  gladden  all  human  hearts. 
The  circumstances  surrounding  the  gift  were  most  solemn. 
Saint  John  delights  to  recall  every  detail  of  the  scene  :  the 
Paschal  feast  had  commenced,3  Satan  was  there  as  master 
of  Judas  Iskarioth  ;  high  above  that  Supper-Eoom  Heaven 
opened  for  Jesus'  vision ;  therein  clearly  He  beheld  "  that 
all  has  been  delivered  into  His  hands  by  His  Father;" 
"  all,"  yes,  all  the  blessed  members  of  the  Church,  marked 
with  the  Seal  of  the  Elect ;  "  knowing  that  He  came  forth 
from  God  and  that  He  was  returning  unto  God,"  there  re- 
mained nothing  now  but  to  give  mankind  the  uttermost 
token  of  His  love.  But  first  He  desired  to  so  humble 
Himself  before  them  all  as  to  show  forth  the  infinite  self- 
annihilation  whereby  He  was  made  flesh,  whereby  He 
would  likewise  give  Himself  to  be  their  meat  and  drink. 

Just  at  the  moment  when  the  ritual  of  the  sacred  Feast 
commanded  the  guests  to  purify  their  hands4  Jesus,  rising 
from  table,  laid  aside  His  garments,5  took  a  towel  and 
girded  His  loins ;  then,  pouring  out  water  into  a  basin,  He 
made  ready  to  wash  the  feet  of  His  disciples,  wiping  them 
with  the  towel  which  served  Him  for  a  girdle.6 

1  John  xiii.  1-3. 

2  S.  John  Chrysostom,  Theophylactus,  Euthymius,  etc. 

3  The  reading  Belirvov  yivo/xfrov,  adopted  by"  Teschendorf  and  Treadles 
from  the  MSS.  of  Sinai  and  the  Vatican,  denotes  that  the  ineal  had  be^un. 
The  received  text  yeuo/xevov,  "ccena  facta"  (Vulgate),  cannot  be  translated 
by  "after  the  supper  ;  "  in  fact  we  see  that  when  the  washing  of  the  feet 
was  finished,  Jesus  betook  Himself  again  to  table  and  continued  the  feast 
(John  xiii.  12).  Hence  this  aorist  participle  must  be  translated  thus  : 
"The  repast  was  commenced,  was  proceeded  with."  In  many  passages  of 
the  New  Testament  it  has  a  similar  meaning  (Matt.  xxvi.  6  :  Mark  vi.  2  ; 
John  xxi.  4). 

4  John  xiii.  4-20. 

5  Did  He  go  so  far  as  to  strip  off  His  tunic,  and  like  the  meanest  slave 
keep  nothing  but  the  cincture  about  His  loins  ?  The  Sacred  Text  seems  to 
imply  as  much,  for  it  says  that  Jesus  put  off  His  garments  (rh  Ifidria,  John 
xiii.  4),  and  probably  the  Master,  following  His  own  precept,  wore  but  a 
single  tunic  beneath  His  mantle  (Matt.  x.  10). 

e  "Observe  that  Jesus  did  everything  for  Himself:  He  Himself  lays 
aside  His  clothing ;  He  Himself  procures  this  towel ;  and  of  Himself  He 


224  UGLY    WEEK. 

Feter  was  the  first  to  see  the  Master  kneel  down  before 
him.1 

"What,  Lord!''  he  exclaimed,  "  wouldst  Thou  wash  my 
feet ! " 

"Thou  knowest  not  at  this  time  what  I  wish  to  do," 
replied  the  Saviour,  "  but  thou  shalt  know  shortly." 

Thus  He  gave  him  to  understand  that  this  ablution  was 
only  a  symbol,  —  a  figure  of  tin-  Redemption  which  washes 
away  our  sins.  But  Peter  refused  to  see  anything  but  the 
humiliation  of  his  Master. 

"  Never,  no,  never,"  he  repeated,  "  shalt  Thou  wash  my 
feet." 

To  overcome  this  impetuous  resistance,  Jesus  said  to 
him  :  — 

"  If  I  do  not  wash  thee,  thou  shalt  have  no  part  with 
Me." 

At  once  reter  comprehended  all  that  this  threat  implied, 
and,  unbounded  as  usual  in  his  fervor, — 

"  Lord,"  he  cried,  "not  only  my  feet,  but  my  hands  and 
my  head ! " 

Tempering  the  Apostle's  fiery  spirit,  Jesus  said  :  — 

"They  that  come  forth  from  this  bath  need  but  to  wash 
the  dust  from  their  feet  and  they  are  pure  from  any 
stain." 

So  was  it  even  now  with  the  Apostles.  Their  greater 
sins  all  washed  away,  they  needed  but  to  cleanse  the  lighter 
spots  from  off  their  souls,  before  approaching  the  Table  of 
their  Lord.      Nevertheless,  there  was  one    impure  spirit 

pours  the  water  into  this  basin  ;  with  those  hands  which  are  the  hands  of 
God,  Who  hath  made  all  things  by  His  might,  with  those  hands  whose 
mere  imposition,  whose  lightest  touch,  healed  the  sirk  and  raised  the  dead 
to  life, — with  those  self-same  hands  fie  poured  water  into  a  basin,  He 
washed  and  wiped  the  feet  of  His  disciples "  (Bossuet,  Meditations  sur 
FJfrvangile:  La  CfeNB,  I*6  partie,  viiie  jour. ) . 

1  It  seems  hardly  reasonable  to  suppose  that  Jesus,  before  coining  to 
S.  Peter,  had  washed  the  feet  of  the  other  Apostles,  and  that  the  rest  should 
have  allowed  Him  to  proceed  without  any  remonstrance,  "Hpifaro  viirreiv 
tovs  irSSas  tG>v  fiadrjTu>v  does  not  mean  that  Jesus  began  with  some  other 
disciples  beside  Peter.  This  simply  declares  that  by  so  doing  the  Saviour 
was  performing  something  unexpected  and  unusual.  The  oCv  in  the  fol- 
lowing verse  resumes  the  thread  of  the  narrative,  and  shows  how  Jesus, 
when  putting  His  design  into  execution,  came  first  of  all  to  the  Chief  of 
the  Apostles. 


THE   FEAST   OF    THE   PASSOVER.  225 

among  them,  and,  without  mentioning  Judas  by  name, 
Jesus  forewarned  him,  by  a  hidden  allusion,  that  He  was 
aware  of  his  crime. 

"  You  are  pure,  but  not  all." 

Notwithstanding  this  the  traitor  did  not  take  the  alarm ; 
he  permitted  the  Lord  to  approach  him,  pour  water  upon 
his  feet,  and  press  them  between  His  hands,  while  he  still 
remained  unmoved. 

The  ablution  finished,  Jesus  resumed  His  garments  and 
again  took  His  place  on  the  couch. 

"  Do  you  know,"  He  asked,  "  what  I  have  now  done  for 
you  ?  You  call  Me  '  Master,'  '  Lord,'  and  you  are  right,  for 
so  I  am.  If  then  I  have  washed  your  feet,  I,  your  Lord 
and  your  Master,  you  also  ought  to  wash  one  another's 
feet,  for  I  have  given  you  an  example  that  you  should  do 
as  I  have  done  to  you." 

"  As  I  have  done  to  you,"  said  the  Lord,  not  "  that  which 
I  have  done."  Thus,  in  fact,  it  is  not  so  much  the  action 
which  we  must  copy,  as  it  is  the  self-renunciation  of  Jesus. 
The  washing  of  the  feet,  as  a  symbol  of  His  Mission,  dis- 
plays Him  unto  us  just  as  He  appeared  upon  earth,  de- 
spoiled of  His  glory  and  clothed  with  the  form  of  a  servant, 
that  so  He  might  purify  the  souls  of  men.  To  deny  one's 
self  thus  far  is  the  law  which  the  Christ  left  to  His  Apos- 
tles. And  truly,  added  He,  I  have  good  right  to  give  this 
law;  "  for  the  servant  is  not  above  his  master,  neither  is  he 
that  is  sent  greater  than  he  that  sendeth  him.  Blessed 
shall  you  be  if  you  understand  these  things ;  most  blessed 
if  you  do  them  ! " 

Yet  all  in  the  College  of  Apostles  were  not  to  know  this 
gladness.  Once  more  Jesus  repeated  that  all  were  not 
clean,  and  the  saying  of  Scripture  was  to  be  fulfilled :  — 

"  He  that  eateth  at  table  with  Me, 

shall  lift  up  his  heel  against  Me." 

Speaking  in  this  way,  the  Lord  made  allusion  to  the 
crime  of  Achitophel,  David's  Councillor,  who  was  not 
afraid  to  involve  himself  in  the  revolt  of  Absalom;1  for 

1  2  Kings  xv.  12,  31,  xvi.  15,  20-23,  xvii.  1-23  ;  Ps.  xl. 

VOL.    II.  —  15 


226  HOLY   WEEK. 

this  sage  of  Israel  had  been  his  master's  table-companion 
many  a  time  before  that  day  when,  with  his  plottings  dis- 
covered and  defeated,  he  went  out  and  hanged  himself  in 

his  despair.  Jesus  recalled  this  fact  to  the  Apostles'  minds 
for  fear  lest  the  defection  of  one  of  their  own  number 
should,  in  after  days,  shake  their  faith. 

"  Even  now  I  announce  it  unto  you,"  He  said,  "ere  ever 
the  thing  come  to  pass,  in  order  that  you  niay  know  Who 
I  am  when  it  shall  be  accomplished." 

Jesus  could  not  divert  His  mind  from  this  treason. 
Dwelling  longer  upon  the  dignity  which  Judas  once  pos- 
sessed but  had  now  so  degraded,  —  a  dignity  so  lofty  "that 
to  receive  one  of  His  Apostles  was  to  receive  the  Christ; 
thereby  receiving  the  Father  Who  hath  sent  Him,"  —  "He 
was  troubled  in  spirit " :  and  for  the  moment  remained 
silent,  as  though  He  hesitated  before  lifting  aside  the  veil 
from  the  future.     But  shortly  He  said  aloud  :  — 

"  Of  a  truth,  ay,  of  a  truth,  one  of  you  shall  betray  Me, 
and  even  now  he  eateth  with  Me."2 

The  astonished  disciples  looked  from  one  to  another, 
not  knowing  of  whom  He  might  be  speaking,  and  in  their 
grief  each  one  began  to  ask,  — 

"  Is  it  I,  Lord  ?" 

Judas  alone  was  silent. 

"It  is  one  of  the  Twelve,"  Jesus  answered;  "he  that 
dippeth  his  hand  into  the  dish  with  Me,  that  man  shall 
betray  Me." 

Undoubtedly  many  of  the  disciples  had  touched  the  dish 
at  that  very  moment;  hence  the  traitor  was  only  the  more 
vaguely  designated.  Yet  one  last  time  the  Master  warned 
that  guilty  soul  of  what  was  to  come,  showing  him  the 
dark  abyss  ready  to  engulf  him. 

"  The  Son  of  Man  indeed  goeth,"  3  He  said,  "  according  to 
that  which  is  written  of  Him,  but  woe  to  that  man  by 

1  John  xiii.  20,  21. 

2  Mark  xiv.  18. 

3'Tirdyei  (.Mark  xiv.  21)  signifies  not  only  departure  from  this  life,  like 
tlir  Hebrew  ^Sn  (den.  xv.  2;  .Ins.  xxiii.  14;  Ps.  xxxix.  14),  but  also 
refers  to  the  submissiveness  of  Him  who  went  forth,  voluntarily  to  meet 
His  death. 


THE  INSTITUTION  OF  THE  EUCHARIST.        227 

whom  the  Son  of  Man  shall  be  betrayed  !  It  were  better 
for  that  man  never  to  have  been  born." 

Terrified  by  these  menacing  words,  the  Apostles  durst  no 
longer  question  the  Saviour,  but  asked  among  themselves 
of  whom  He  was  speaking ;  and  still  no  one  thought  of 
Judas.     At  last  the  traitor  repeated  after  the  others,1  — 

"  Is  it  I,  Master  ?  " 

"  Thou  hast  said  it,"  responded  Jesus ;  "  thou  art  he." 

This  reply,  spoken  in  a  low  tone,  was  heard  by  none 
but  Judas,  leaving  him  as  stolid  and  impassive  as  ever. 
Henceforth  nothing  any  more  could  touch  him,  his  soul 
was  steeled  for  the  crime  ;  and  it  was  with  the  most  abso- 
lute certainty  of  beholding  His  Body  and  His  Blood  pro- 
faned in  His  Presence  that  Jesus  took  within  His  holy 
hands  the  bread  of  the  Eucharist.  Long  after,  when  the 
Lord  revealed  to  Saint  Paul  the  circumstances  of  the  Last 
Supper,  He  first  reminded  His  minister  of  what  took  place 
on  that  same  woful  night,  that  night  of  treason  and  be- 
trayal ;  for  it  was  "  on  the  night  in  which  he  was  betrayed 
He  took  bread."  2 

III.    The  Institution  of  the  Eucharist. 

Matt.  xxvi.  26-29  ;  Mark  xiv.  22-25  ;  Luke  xxii.  19-23  ;  John  xiii.  23-30. 

The  meal  was  drawing  to  its  close.3  "  And  whilst  they 
were  still  eating,  Jesus  took  one  of  the  loaves  of  unleavened 
bread  and  having  given  thanks  He  blessed  it."  The  Eitual 
of  the  Passover  ordained  that  all  bread  should  be  broken 
before  it  could  be  eaten.  Therefore  Jesus  parted  that 
which  was  in  His  hands  and  offered  the  fragments  to  the 
Apostles. 

"  Take  ye  and  eat,"  He  said ;  "  this  is  4  My  Body,  which 

1  Matt.  xxvi.  25. 

2  1  Cor.  xi.  23. 

3  'E<t6wvtuv  avruv  (Matt.  xxvi.  26  ;  Mark  xiv.  22  ;  1  Cor.  xi.  24). 

4  Luke  xxii.  19.  Protestant  theologians  long  ago  objected  that  the 
Syriac  had  no  word  equivalent  to  our  verb  "to  symbolize"  or  "to 
typify,"  and  so  when  Jesus  desired  to  say,  "This  represents  My  body," 
He  was  obliged  to  make  use  of  this  inexact  phrase,  "This  is  My  body.' 


238  HOLY   WEEK. 

is  given  for  you,"  broken  for  your  sakes,1  bruised  and  beaten 
by  the  blows  of  men.2 

Deep  silence  ensued  upon  these  words, —  the  silence  of 
awe  and  amazement  doubtless,  but  also  of  humble  and  sub- 
missive faith ;  for  every  one  there  well  remembered  the 
promise  made  to  them  long  since  on  the  lakeside :  "  The 
bread  which  I  shall  give  you  shall  be  My  Flesh,  for  the 
life  of  the  world.  My  Flesh  is  truly  meat  and  My  Blood 
is  truly  drink." 3  And  whether  Judas  secretly  revived  the 
murmurs  then  uttered  by  the  people  of  Capharnaum,  yet 
there  was  nothing  of  the  sort  now  among  the  other  disci- 
ples ;  thereafter  for  them  there  was  to  be  no  more  room  for 
doubt ;  and  to  them  this  saying  of  Jesus  was  neither  a 
figure  barren  of  meaning  nor  an  obscure  comparison.  It 
declared  that  here,  in  their  presence,  under  the  appearances 
of  bread,  was  the  flesh  of  their  God  made  Man.4 

Cardinal  Wiseman  has  shown  that  on  the  contrary  no  language  is  richer 
in  terms  with  which  to  express  the  idea  of  "to  represent,"  "to  figure 
forth."  In  his  Horce  Syriacoe,  par.  iv.,  he  has  arranged  a  list  which  com- 
prises forty-one  or  rather  fifty-four  such  words.  This  reply  was  so  per- 
emptorily conclusive  that  the  Protestants  relinquished  this  objection,  and 
it  has  disappeared  from  the  seventh  edition  of  Dr.  Home's  Introduction. 
However,  the  tongue  spoken  by  Jesus  was  not  the  Syriac  but  the  Ara- 
mean  ;  and  M.  Drach  has  established  the  same  thesis  for  this  dialect  which 
Mgr.  Wiseman  proved  for  the  Syriac  (Insert/// ion  Mbratque,  2e  edition, 
Borne,  p.  33). 

1  The  Gospel  and  the  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  give  this  expression  of 
the  Saviour  under  a  different  form,  —  "given  for  you,"  says  S.  Luke,  5t56,ue- 
vov  ;  "rent  into  fragments,"  adds  S.  Paul,  to  virep  v/j.u>v  Qpvinbp.evov  (as 
we  read  in  Beza's  Codex),  or  again,  according  to  another  reading,  preserved 
by  this  same  manuscript  and  in  that  of  Sinai  and  Ephrsem,  K\wp.evov, 
"broken,  shattered." 

2  "They  were  wont  in  olden  days  to  reduce  the  victim  and  the  cakes 
offered  to  God  into  small  fragments,  and  this  was  botli  a  mark  of  their 
affliction  and  of  the  sacrifice  they  were  making  to  the  Lord.  It  was  with 
this  meaning  that  the  breaking  of  the  Sacred  Bread,  whether  it  was  actu- 
ally done  in  order  to  be  distributed,  or  for  some  other  mystical  reason,  made 
part  of  the  Sacrifice  by  representing  Jesus  ( 'hrist  under  the  blows  of  His 
people,  His  body  broken  and  pierced  for  us.  This  the  Greeks  still  represent 
by  an  even  more  striking  ceremony,  transfixing  the  Consecrated  Bread  with 
a  tiny  sort  of  lance,  while  at  the  same  time  they  recite  those  words  of  the 
Gospel,  'One  of  the  soldiers  pierced  His  side  with  a  lance,  etc'  "  (Bossuet, 
Explication*  despribres  de  la  Messe,  xvii.). 

3  John  vi.  52,  56. 

4  Since  Zwinglius'  time  (Bossuet,  Eistnirc  des  Variations,  lib.  ii.)  the 
Protestant  theologians  have  hardly  changed  their  general  line  of  argument. 


THE  INSTITUTION  OF   THE  EUCHARIST.       229 

The  bread  of  azymes,  broken  and  changed  into  the  Body 
of  Jesus,  rested  now  on  the  dish  upon  the  table.1  Each 
one  received  a  portion,  and  so  in  this,  the  first  of  all  Com- 
munions, side  by  side  with  the  sacrilegious  spirit  were  pure 
souls  exulting  in  this  chaste  union,  overflowing  with  the 
delights  of  its  holy  harmony.  "  In  the  raptures  of  human 
love,  what  mother,  what  lover  knows  not  the  impulse  to 
consume,  nay,  to  absorb,  after  any  fashion  whatsoever  to 
be  incorporate  with  the  beloved  ?  .  .  .  As  though  by  de- 
vouring the  loved  one  it  were  possible  to  possess  his  soul 
and  body,  to  feed  thereon,  to  be  one  with  him,  to  live  in 
him  ?     This  is  that  fury  of  tenderness  which  can  never  be 

"We  may  understand  the  Saviour's  words  in  a  figurative  sense,"  say  they, 
"because  we  find  in  Scripture  a  multitude  of  passages  where  the  verb  'to 
be '  signifies  '  to  represent ; '  "  and  they  proceed  to  cite  text  after  text.  But 
to  interpret  two  passages  by  any  such  comparison,  the  prime  requisite  is 
that  they  be  sufficiently  similar,  that  is  to  say,  that  the  author  not  only 
has  employed  the  same  words  in  both,  but  that  he  also  had  the  same  inten- 
tion animating  his  mind.  This  wise  rule  of  interpretation  was  formulated 
by  Protestant  writers  (Home,  Ernesti,  Amnion).  Starting  with  this  prin- 
ciple, Cardinal  Wiseman  has  demonstrated  that  not  one  of  the  texts  cited 
can  be  put  side  by  side  with  the  words  used  in  the  institution  of  the 
Eucharist.  Most  of  these  passages  are  easily  explained  as  a  symbol  or  an 
allegory,  —  "The  seven  cows  are  seven  years  "  (Gen.  xli.  26),  "The  stone 
was  the  Christ"  (1  Cor.  x.  4),  etc.  ;  or  a  simple  metaphor,  —  "I  am  the 
Vine;  I  am  the  Door."  But  in  all  these  various  cases  the  context  is 
enough  to  remove  any  ambiguity.  When  refuted  at  this  point,  the  Prot- 
estants thought  they  could  discover,  in  the  terms  used  by  Jesus,  expressions 
borrowed  from  the  ritual  of  the  Jewish  Pasch,  where  the  master  of  the 
house,  taking  the  morsel  of  bread,  says,  "This  is  the  bread  of  affliction 
which  our  fathers  did  eat,"  and  lifted  up  the  lamb  likewise,  saying,  ' 
"This  is  the  body  of  the  Passover."  But  Maimonides  informs  us  that 
these  formulae  did  not  come  into  use  till  after  the  dispersion  of  the  Jews  ; 
and  furthermore  these  words,  "This  is  the  bread  of  affliction,"  taken  in 
their  natural  sense,  do  not  mean  "This  is  for  a  figure  of  the  bread,"  but 
"This  is  a  fashion  of  bread  which  our  fathers  did  eat  in  the  day  of  afflic- 
tion." As  to  the  other  formula,  "This  is  the  body  of  the  lamb,"  the  Prot- 
estaut  Schoettgen  (Horce  Hebraicce,  t.  i,  p.  227  et  sq.)  has  shown  that  in 
Syro-Chaldaic  the  term  ^J,  "body,"  is  a  form  of  speech  signifying  "in 
reality,"  "  in  truth," analogous  to  our  pronoun  "  himself,"  "herself ;  "  and 
consequently  that  ,S5IJ  i"l],  "This  is  My  Body,"  if  borrowed  from  the 
Paschal  formula:  HQ3  Witt  131J  JIT,  would  signify  —  quite  contrary  to 
the  intention  and  desire  of  Protestants  — -  "  This  is  Myself." 

1  The  terms  chosen  by  the  Evangelists:  Z8uk(v,  \d/3eTe,  (payere  seem  to 
imply  that  Jesus  did  not  in  fact  give  each  one  of  the  Apostles  the  Conse- 
crated Bread,  but  that  He  laid  the  morsels  upon  a  plate  which  was  passed 
from  hand  to  hand. 


230  HOLY   WEEK. 

satiated  by  any  human  passion,  but  is,  indeed,  the  prompt- 
ing of  truth  and  wisdom,  in  the  love  of  Jesus:  Take,  eat! 
This  is  My  Body;  and  by  consuming  satisfy  thyself;  it  is 
not  a  morsel  of  My  Body,  that  thou  dost  absorb,  but  even 
the  whole."1 

Wholly  and  entirely  Jesus  had  given  Himself  for  them, 
and  to  this  He  testified  by  adding  at  once,  without  waiting 
until  the  consecration  of  the  Cup  :  — 

"  Do  this  in  remembrance  of  Me."  2 

But,  nevertheless,  it  remained  for  Him  to  tender  them  a 
completer  representation  of  His  Death  by  showing  them 
that,  after  His  Body  was  immolated,  His  Blood  must  be 
shed.     Mark  in  what  manner  He  chose  to  do  this. 

The  repast  was  concluded  ;  the  third  cup  3  —  "  The  Chal- 
ice of  Benediction,"  which  must  be  drunk  before  singing 
the  final  hymns  —  was  now  poured  out.  Jesus  took  it, 
blessed  it,  and  presented  it  to  the  Apostles. 

"  Drink  ye  all  of  this,"  He  said ;  "  this  is  My  Blood, 
the  Blood  of  the  Sacrifice,  which  shall  be  shed  for  many 
in  remission  of  sins,"4  words  whose  substance  Saint  Luke 
has  reduced  to  those  words :  "  This  Cup  is  the  New  Testa- 
ment in  My  Blood,  which  shall  be  shed  for  you."  5 

Therefore  within  this  cup  there  was  a  Blood  which  soon 
must  gush  forth  to  consummate  the  New  Covenant.  Full 
of  these  thoughts  Jesus  beheld  nothing  now  but  that  fast- 
approaching  death,  and  found  no  words  wherewith  to  con- 
secrate this  sacrificial  wine  better  than  the  words  of  Moses, 
when  He  likewise  sealed  in  blood  God's  alliance  of  ancient 

1  Bossuet,  Meditations  sur  Irs  J&oangiles :  La  Cenb,  !«  partie,  24e  jour. 
"  Let  no  one  sny,  'the  spirit  suffices  ! '  The  body  is  the  means  whereby  we 
arc  united  to  the  spirit.  'T  was  by  being  made  flesh  that  the  Sun  of  Man 
descended  to  our  lowly  estate  ;  and  again  'tis  by  His  flesh  we  must  receive 
Him   that  so  we  may  be  united  to  His  Spirit,  to  His  Godhead  "  {ibid.). 

2  Luke  xxii.  19. 

3  Luke  xxii.  20. 

4  In  the  Greek  text,  the  repetition  of  the  article  gives  a  force  to  the  two 
members  of  the  phrase  which  defies  any  translation  :  Tovto  yap  eari  rb 
at/xd  /ulov  rb  ttjs  Kaivrj?  ttjs  8ia6rjKVS,  to  ircpl  iroXk&v  inxvvvop.t'vov  els  &<pecni> 
afjLapriwv  (Matt  xxvi.  2S).  The  Saviour's  thought  develops  itself  by  a 
gradation,  every  line  whereof  goes  to  convince  us  that  the  words  must  bo 
taken  in  their  literal  sense. 

6  Luke  xxii.  20. 


THE  INSTITUTION  OF   THE  EUCHARIST.        231 

times ! 1     Yet  at  the  same  time  the  Lord  offered  unto  His 
own,  in  this  His  Chalice,  a  source  of  eternal  life. 

"  Of  a  truth,  I  will  drink  no  more  of  this  fruit  of  the 
vine  until  that  day  when  I  shall  drink  it  with  you  new 
iu  My  Father's  Kingdom.2  But  for  you,  as  often  as  you 
drink  thereof  do  it  in  remembrance  of  Me."3 

As  Jesus  finished  speaking  these  words  he  met  the  eyes- 
of  Judas.4 

"  Behold  the  hand  of  the  traitor,"  He  said,  "  who  sitteth 
with  me  at  table  ! " 

Then  condemning  the  sacrilegious  act  He  repeated :  — 

"  The  Son  of  Man  goeth  away  according  to  the  Divine 
Decrees ;  but  woe  to  him  by  whom  He  is  betrayed  ! " 

At  this  anathema  the  Apostles  shuddered  with  alarm, 
asking  anew  which  of  their  number  was  to  commit  this 
crime. 

Now  one  of  them,  he  whom  Jesus  loved,  while  leaning 
upon  the  Master's  breast,5  had  tried  to  read  the  answer  in 
His  eyes.  Peter  remarked  John's  attitude,  familiar  as  of 
old,  and  thought  that  he  at  least  must  know  all,  —  that, 
perchance,  by  some  gesture  or  word  he  had  rather  divined 
than  heard  the  name. 

"  Who  is  it  ? "  6  he  whispered. 

1  "Moses,"  says  S.  Paul,  "when  he  had  recited  the  ordinances  of  the 
Law  before  the  people,  took  the  blood  of  victims  with  water  and  sprinkled 
it  upon  the  book  and  over  the  whole  people,  saying,  '  This  is  the  blood 
of  the  Testament  which  God  has  made  unto  you '  "  (Heb,  ix.  19,  20;  Exod. 
xxiv.  8).  The  Saviour  added  only  two  words  to  this  saying  of  Moses, 
"This  Blood  is  Mine  .  .   .  This  New  Testament." 

2  Matt.  xxvi.  29.  S.  Luke  records  similar  words  at  the  beginning  of 
the  Supper  (Luke  xxii.  18).  It  may  be,  however,  that  the  Saviour  did 
not  pronounce  them  twice,  and  that  here,  as  in  so  many  other  circum- 
stances, S.  Matthew  does  not  follow  the  exact  order  of  the  Master's 
discourse. 

3  1  Cor.  xi.  25. 

4  Luke  xxii.  21-23.  This  renewed  denunciation  of  the  crime  of  Judas 
is  reported  by  S.  Luke  after  the  Consecration  of  the  Chalice,  and  conse- 
quently it  should  be  distinguished  from  the  first,  spoken  of  by  SS.  Mat- 
thew and  Mark  (see  Bossuet,  Aleditations  sur  VEvangile  :  La  C£ne,  lxvie 
journee). 

5  John  xiii.  23-30. 

6  This  verse  presents  a  numerous  array  of  different  readings.  The  like- 
liest of  all  is  the  one  we  find  in  the  Vatican  MS.  :  Neuei  tovtij)  .  .  .   ko.1 


So2  llUJ.Y    WEEK. 

But  John  was  still  as  ignorant  of  the  truth  as  he. 

"  Master,"  he  asked,  "  who  is  it  ?  " 

"  He  to  whom  1  shall  reach  the  morsel  of  bread  dipped 
in  this  dish,"  Jesus  replied,  and  having  moistened  it,  He 
gave  it  to  Judas,  Son  of  Simon,  the  man  from  Kerioth. 
"  And  with  the  morsel  of  bread  Satan  entered  into  him."  1 

"  That  which  thou  doest,"  Jesus  said  to  him,  "  do 
quickly." 

The  Apostles  heard  these  last  words  ;  but  as  Judas  kept 
the  common  purse,  they  believed  that  Jesus  was  telling 
him  to  "  buy  what  we  need  for  the  feast,  or  to  give  certain 
alms  to  the  poor."  John  alone  understood  what  had  taken 
place  :  he  saw  the  traitor,  straightway  upon  receiving  the 
bread,  rise  up  and  at  once  disappear  from  the  hall.  "  It 
was  night,"  he  adds.  And  Judas  went  forth  to  be  lost 
within  the  blackness  of  an  everlasting  gloom. 


IV.    Peter's  Fall  Foretold. 

John  xiii.  31-38  ;  Luke  xxii.  24-38. 

So  soon  as  Judas  was  gone 2  Jesus  had  no  further 
thought  for  anything  but  the  salvation  of  the  world,  the 
glory  which  God  would  gain  even  from  this  awful  act  of 
treachery,  and  His  Soul  was  fain  to  exult  in  the  joy  of  this 
perfected  work  of  Redemption. 

"  Now  is  the  Son  of  Man  glorified,"  He  said,  "  and  God 
is  glorified  in  Him ;  nor  will  He  any  longer  delay  to  glorify 
Himself." 

Though  they  could  not  wholly  grasp  the  significance  of 
these  words  the  Apostles  felt  that  they  presaged  the  death 
of  their  Master,  and  at  the  thought  their  sorrow  was  unre- 
strained, the  while  Jesus  comforted  them  with  a  gentleness 
most  like  the  tender  talk  of  a  mother. 

\tyei  avTu>.     Wirk  rt's   ioriv  irepl  ov   \tyei.      Lachmann,   Tregelles,  and 
Teschendorf  have  adopted  it. 

1  Here  S.  John  repeats  what  S.  Luke  has  already  told  us  concerning 
Judns  selling  his  Master  to  the  princes  of  the  priesthood  (Luke  xxii.  3). 

2  John  xiii.  31-35. 


PETER'S  EALL  FORETOLD.  233 

"  My  little  children,"  He  called  them,  "  I  am  to  be  with 
you  for  but  a  little  longer.  You  shall  seek  Me,  and  even 
as  I  told  the  Jews  that  they  could  not  go  whither  I  am 
going,  so  I  say  to  you  now.1  I  give  you  a  new  Command- 
ment,2 that  you  love  one  another,  that  each  of  you  be  be- 
loved by  the  others,  even  as  I  have  loved  you ;  by  this  all 
men  shall  know  that  you  are  My  disciples,  if  you  mutually 
love  one  another." 

A  divine  lesson  this,  whose  importance  the  Apostles 
rightly  esteemed  when,  in  after  days,  rising  above  the 
Mosaic  Law,  they  welcomed  all  mankind  as  their  brethren, 
showed  a  greater  love  for  them  than  for  themselves,  and 
in  such  God-like  charity  found  a  peace  and  gladness  hith- 
erto unknown  on  earth. 

Jesus  left  His  disciples  to  gather  the  meaning  of  this 
new  law  in  silence ;  but  Peter  soon  broke  the  thoughtful 
quiet.3  In  all  that  he  had  just  heard  one  thing  alone  stood 
out  sharply  before  his  mind,  —  the  idea  that  the  Master 
was  about  to  separate  Himself  from  their  company. 

"  Lord,"  he  said,  "  where  art  Thou  coing  ? " 

"  Whither  I  go,"  responded  Jesus,  "  thou  canst  not  follow 
Me  now  ;  later  on  thou  shalt  follow  Me." 

Those  words  unveiled  the  future  before  Peter's  eyes, — 
his  fall  in  the  time  of  headstrong  self-confidence ;  his  self- 
denial  and  his  martyrdom  in  the  days  of  his  humility. 
But  as  yet  he  could  not  comprehend  all  this. 

"  And  why  cannot  I  follow  Thee  now  ? "  he  replied.  "  I 
will  lay  down  my  life  for  Thee." 

"  Thou  wilt  lay  down  thy  life  for  Me  ! "  answered  Jesus. 
"  Of  a  truth,  yea,  of  a  truth,  I  tell  thee,  the  cock  shall  not 

1"ApTi  is  designedly  reserved  to  the  end  of  the  phrase  :  I  say  this  unto 
you  now  ;  I  have  delayed  as  long  as  possible,  but  I  can  no  longer  conceal 
this  hard  necessity. 

2  This  precept  is  new  :  (1)  because  although  the  Law  commanded  them 
to  love  one's  neighbor  as  oneself,  Jesus  adds  this  important  injunction  to 
love  him  as  He  has  done  ;  that  is  to  say,  not  simply  as  oneself,  but  if  need 
be  unto  the  utter  abnegation  of  oneself;  (2)  because  the  Jews  regarded 
none  but  the  children  of  Israel  as  their  neighbors,  whereas  Christians  must 
look  upon  all  men  as  their  brothers  ;  (3)  because,  in  the  new  Law,  love  is 
the  grand  principle  of  all  our  action ;  in  the  old  Law  it  was  fear. 

3  John  xiii.  36-38. 


234  HOLY    WEEK. 

crow  till  thou  deny  Me  thrice."  Then  once  more  the  Lord 
was  silent. 

This  prediction  humbled  Peter's  spirit;  he  sunk  back 
overcome,  as  though  struck  down  from  the  lofty  rank  to 
which  the  Master  had  raised  him.  Thus,  too,  the  other 
Apostles  understood  this  saying,  for  they  began  immedi- 
ately to  ask  which  one  of  them  should  succeed  to  the 
Primacy,  of  which  Simon  was  no  longer  esteemed  worthy.1 
This  rivalry  soon  involved  them  in  a  dispute,  and  at  the 
very  table  where  He  had  but  uow  united  His  Apostles  in 
blessed  Communion  Jesus  must  needs  interpose  so  soon  to 
curb  their  selfish  ambitions. 

"  The  kings  of  the  nations,"  He  began,  "  command  them 
even  as  masters,  and  those  that  have  the  power  over  them 
wish  to  be  called  their  Benefactors.2  But  for  you  do  not 
likewise ;  let  the  greatest  become  the  least,  and  let  the  first 
among  you  be  the  servant  of  all.  For  which  is  the  greater, 
he  that  sitteth  at  table  or  he  that  serveth  ?  Yet  I  have 
been  among  you  even  as  a  Servant." 

Evidently  this  allusion  to  the  humility  of  which  He  had 
given  them  such  an  example  hardly  moved  these  carnal- 
minded  men  at  all,  for  the  Lord  went  on  at  once  to  set 
before  their  sight  the  recompenses  assured  to  the  compan- 
ions of  His  trials.  A  Kingdom  was  prepared  for  them  ;  in 
this  Kingdom  there  would  be  much  feasting,  whereat  all 
should  eat  and  drink ;  there  would  be  thrones  likewise, 
where  seated  with  Him  they  should  judge  the  twelve 
tribes  of  Israel. 

The  Apostles  received  these  promises  in  silent  de- 
light. Peter  listened  with  them,  but  still  overwhelmed 
by  the  prediction  of  the  Master.  Jesus  marked  his 
sadness. 

"  Simon,  Simon,"  He  said,3  "  Satan  hath  desired  to  sift 
thee  as  wheat  is  sifted.     But  I  have  prayed  for  thee,  that 

i  Luke  ii.  24-30. 

2  In  the  eyes  of  the  ancients  this  title  was  one  of  the  most  flattering 
distinctions  which  could  be  conferred  upon  one  (Herodotus  viii.  85  ;  Tlm- 
cydides  i.  12!),  etc. ).  Ptolemy  III.  bore  the  name  of  Benefactor,  Evergete  : 
TSivepyiryfs. 

8  Luke  ii.  31-38. 


PETER'S  FALL  FORETOLD.  235 

thy  faith  fail  not.  And  do  thou  in  thy  turn 1  confirm  thy 
brethren." 

The  Lord  spared  nothing  to  revive  the  spirit  of  the 
Prince  of  the  Apostles ;  not  content  with  praying  for  him 
in  a  special  manner  He  promised  him  an  impregnable  faith, 
so  steadfast  and  constant  that  it  would  suffice  to  strengthen 
his  brethren,  and  make  him  the  infallible  mouth-piece  of 
Truth.2  In  return  for  such  gifts  of  grace  He  only  de- 
manded that  His  servant  should  assume  a  humility  com- 
mensurate with  his  unequalled  greatness. 

Once  again  Peter  could  not  comprehend  all  this ;  he 
was  only  the  more  obstinate  in  his  presumption,  boasting 
of  his  courage,  insisting  that  he  was  sure  of  himself. 

"  Master,"  he  cried,  "  I  am  ready  to  go  with  Thee  to 
prison  and  to  death." 

Then  once  more  Jesus  foretold  his  fall. 

"  Peter,"  He  said  this  time,  by  that  symbolic  name  re- 
minding him  of  the  firmness  which  he  was  to  look  for 
without  avail  from  him,3  —  "  Peter,  to-day  even  the  cock 
shall  not  crow  until  thou  hast  said  three  times  that  thou 
knowest  Me  not." 

But  the  Chief  of  the  Apostles  was  not  the  only  one 
thus  threatened ;  the  flock  was  to  be  scattered  and  be- 
reft of  their  Shepherd.  Of  this  Jesus  forewarned  them 
now. 

"  "When  I  sent  you  without  sack,  without  scrip,  without 
shoes,"  He  said,  "  did  you  want  for  anything  ? " 

"  Nothing,  Lord." 

"  But  now  whoever  hath  a  purse  or  scrip  let  him  take 
them,  and  let  him  that  hath  naught  sell  all,  even  his  gar- 
ment, that  he  may  buy  a  sword.  For  I  say  unto  you,  that 
which  Israel  hath  foretold  of  the  Messiah  is  now  to  be 

1  Maldonatus'  interpretation  seems  to  us  preferable  to  the  ordinary  trans- 
lation :  "When  thou  shalt  be  converted;"  for  this  is  more  in  harmony 
with  the  order  of  ideas,  and  besides  eiruTrpe \pds  in  many  parts  of  Scripture 
has  the  meaning  here  given  it  by  the  learned  Jesuit  (Ps.  Ixxxiv.  7  ;  Joel 
ii.  14  ;  Acts  vii.  42). 

2  Concilium  Vaticanum,  Const  it  ut  in  dogmabica  de  Ecdesia,  cap.  iv. 

3  This  is  the  only  place  in  the  Gospel  where  we  find  Jesus,  who  had 
given  this  name  of  Peter  to  Simon,  make  use  of  it  in  addressing  him. 


236  HOLY    WEEK. 

fulfilled  in  Me :  He  shall  be  reckoned  in  the  ranks  of  the 
wicked."  1 

This  was  but  meant  as  a  warning  to  bid  them  be  in 
readiness  for  a  spiritual  struggb,  but  the  Apostles  under- 
stood it  as  referring  to  some  pressing  danger. 

"  Lord,"  they  exclaimed,  "  see,  we  have  here  two  swords." 

Grieved  to  the  heart  at  finding  His  disciples,  just  as 
formerly,  ever  prone  to  misunderstand  His  thought,  Jesus 
put  aside  the  swords. 

"  It  is  enough,"  He  said. 

And  breaking  off  the  theme  of  their  converse  He  no 
longer  endeavored  to  do  anything  but  fortify  their  souls 
against  the  future. 

1  In  Isaiah  this  prediction  terminates  the  long  description  of  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  Messiah,  chap.  liii.  12. 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE  LAST  DISCOURSES  OF  JESUS. 

I.    The  Discourse  after  the  Last  Supper. 

John  xiv.  ;  Matt.  xxvi.  30  ;  Mark  xiv.  26. 

For  the  most  part  the  early  Christians  probably  had  no 
knowledge  of  these  incidents  of  the  Paschal  Meal  which 
we  are  about  to  narrate ; l  but  toward  the  close  of  the  first 
century  John  Evangelist  completed  the  testimony  of  his 
predecessors  by  relating  the  instructions  given  them  after 
the  Passover  was  eaten.  To  report  them  so  that  they 
should  offer  nothing  obscure  or  difficult  to  our  minds  it 
would  have  been  necessary  to  reproduce  every  detail  in 
the  scene,  the  speaking  glance,  the  tender  accents  and 
telling  gestures  of  the  Master,  which  together  often  were 
sufficient  to  illuminate  His  obscurest  thought.2  P>ut  aside 
from  the  impossibility  of  the  pen  ever  satisfactorily  repro- 
ducing human  speech,  Saint  John  was  animated  by  a  far 
different  design.  Here,  as  everywhere  in  his  Gospel,  eag- 
erly bent  upon  setting  the  Godhead  of  the  Christ  in  a 
stronger  light,  he  only  remembers  such  sentences  of  the 
Master  as  go  to  establish  this  dogma,  overlooking  a  thou- 
sand accessories  which  we  should  have  rejoiced  to  know, 

1  There  is  little  doubt  but  that  the  three  Synoptic  Writers  represent 
the  Christian  Doctrine,  and  the  Life  of  the  Christ  in  particular,  much  as 
the  first  pastors  preached  it  before  the  faithful  during  the  first  years  of  the 
Church. 

2  Patrizi,  Commentarium  in  Joannem,  Procemiura. 


238  HOLY   WEEK. 

but  which  he  did  not  think  proper  either  to  his  genius  or 
to  the  end  he  had  always  in  view.  Perhaps,  too,  the  divine 
lessons  only  lingered  in  his  memory  as  pictures  half  blurred 
and  dimmed  by  time.1  Very  many  details,  all  the  less  im- 
portant lines  indeed,  had  faded  away  ;  the  painting  lacked 
any  effective  master-plan  by  which  the  whole  would  be 
grouped  massively  and  given  a  body  :  but  despite  this  ap- 
parent confusion  some  larger  outlines  are  still  easily  to  be 
distinguished  from  the  rest,  and  certain  words  of  the  Christ 
stand  out  in  bright  relief;  these  the  Beloved  Disciple  has 
left  to  the  Church,  just  as  he  was  accustomed  to  meditate 
upon  them  continually  after  the  death  of  the  Master,  and 
hence  they  are  the  more  touching,  and  open  up  to  our 
minds  such  "  depths  of  loneliness  as  might  well  thrill  us 
with  sympathy."  2 

The  first  of  the  conversations  which  he  now  records  took 
place  in  the  Supper-lioom.3  The  Lord,  whose  object  it 
was  to  prepare  His  Apostles  for  the  events  ahout  to  follow, 
now  bade  them  feel  no  alarm  nor  trouble,  hut  believe  in 
God,  —  to  believe  likewise  in  Him,  for  He  was  going  to 
leave  them  now  only  that  He  might  prepare  a  place  among 
those  innumerable  mansions  which  await  them  in  their 
Father's  House. 

1  Here  we  have  done  little  else  than  translate  the  thought  of  the  learned 
professor  of  the  Roman  College  :  "  .  .  .  Tali  rations  sermones  hosce  ah  eo 
referri,  ut  appareat  dfiecrios  e  memoria  sua  deproniere,  quandoquidem,  quum 
longius  hi  sermones  excurrunt,  turn  abruption  in  iis  deprehenditnr  dicendi 
genus,  iisdem  sententiis  saepe  repetitis,  ac  deficient e  plerumque  online  ac 
serie  discursus  :  id  vero  eum  onvnino  prodit,  qui  humaniore  elocutione  des- 
titutus,  alieujus  sermones  a  se  auditos  referre  memoriter  stndet  "  (Patrizi, 
De  Evangeliis,  lib.  i.,  cap.  iv.,  quaest.  ii.  9).  "  Ipsa  orationis  forma  ea 
est,  ut  in  argumentis  vel  assumptio  omnino  desideretur,  vel  coniplexio, 
utque  eorum  qua?  dicuntur  connexum  et  consequentiam  deesse  facile  ex- 
istimes  "  (Patrizi,  Commcntarium  in  Joannem,  Prooemium).  "S.  Joannes 
non  potuisset  tot  ac  tantos  Magistri  sermones  adeo  praesertim  inter  se 
similes,  per  tot  annos  memoria  retinere  ;  eum  autem  ea  colloquia,  quando 
proferebantur,  scripto  consignasse  a  moribus  apostolorum  abhorret  ;  neqne 
memorise  defectum  supplevisse  quoad  singula  vocabula  divinam  inspira- 
tionem  credi  debet,  quum  communis  sententia  teneat  inspirationeni  con- 
cept us  quidem  sacris  scriptoribus  suppeditare,  non  vero  semper  singularia 
verba  quibus  conceptua  enuncientur "  (Corluy,  Commcntarius  in  Evange^ 
'in in  S.  Joannis,  p.  15  ;  editio  altera). 

2  Bossuet,  Meditations  sur  I'Evangile :  La  Ci&NE,  lxviic  journee, 

3  John  xiv.  1-17. 


DISCOURSE  AFTER    THE  LAST  SUPPER.         239 

"  If  it  were  not  so,"  He  added,  "  I  would  have  told  you,1 
for  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you.  And  when  I  shall 
have  gone,2  and  shall  have  prepared  a  place  for  you,  I  will 
return  and  I  will  take  you  to  Myself,  that  there  where  I 
am  you  may  be  also.  Now  whither  I  go  you  know,  and 
the  way  you  know."  3 

"  Lord,"  said  Thomas,  "  we  do  not  know  where  you  are 
going,  and  how  should  we  know  the  way  ? " 

"  I  am  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life,"  Jesus  answered 
him.  "  No  one  cometh  unto  the  Father  but  by  Me.  If 
you  had  known  Me  you  would  have  known  My  Father 
also,  but  even  already  you  do  know  Him  and  you  have 
seen  Him."  4 

'  'Ec  rrj  oIkIo.  rod  irarpos  fxov  fj.oval  yroWai  elcriv  •  el  Se  fxr\,  elirov  'dv  vpuv  •  on 
■Kopevoixai  eroifxaaai  towov  vpuv  (John  xiv.  2).  The  conjunction  on,  though 
suppressed  in  the  received  text,  ought  to  be  replaced,  for  we  find  it  in  the 
oldest  Manuscripts  and  most  of  the  Versions.  It  connects  the  words  which 
follow,  not  to  the  member  of  the  preceding  phrase,  elirov  dv  v/juv,  but  to 
fj.ova.1  TroWai  elacv  :  "  There  are  many  mansions,  and  I  go  thither  to  pre- 
pare your  places."  Hence  the  words  el  8e  /xrj,  elirov  dv  vplv  form  a  parenthe- 
sis, "If  it  were  not  so  I  should  have  told  you."  "With  all  this  great 
bounty,  with  so  much  love  awaiting  you,  shall  I  conceal  from  you  your 
lot?"  ( Bossuet,  Miditations :  La  Cene,  lxxviiie  jour.)  To  think,  with 
Grotius,  Maldonatus,  and  others,  of  joining  on  iropevo/xai  to  elirov  dv  vpuv, 
"  I  would  have  told  you  that  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you,"  would 
be  to  change  the  sense,  and  introduce  inexplicable  difficulties  into  the 
text 

2  'Edv,  and  not  Srav.  Jesus  does  not  set  a  fixed  time  for  this  return  , 
the  one  thing  requisite  for  them  was  to  rest  assured  that  the  Master  only 
withdrew  in  order  to  prepare  a  dwelling-place  and  to  return  thereafter. 
This  promise  was  fulfilled  on  the  day  of  the  Resurrection  and  upon  the 
ensuing  appearances  of  the  Saviour  ;  it  is  accomplished  likewise  every  day 
by  means  of  that  intimate  converse  wherein  the  Saviour  comes  to  visit  the 
secret  places  of  our  souls,  searching  them,  purifying  them,  and  enriching 
them  with  the  gifts  of  grace. 

3  Kcu  birov  ey<b  inrdyu)  oidare,  nal  tt)v  oddv  oioare  (reading  found  in  the 
Alexandrian  MS.  and  Beza's  Codex).  This  striking  repetition  of  the  verb 
oidare  is  very  natural  at  a  moment  when  Jesus  wishes  to  awaken  the  minds 
of  the  Apostles,  and  elevate  them  to  a  higher  world  of  thought ;  so,  too, 
we  find  it  in  the  Vulgate  and  Peshito. 

4  Aw  dpn  yivuxTKere.  "  Sed  abhinc  nostis  (Tertullian)."  "  Henceforth 
you  are  beginning  to  understand  this"  by  the  faith  which  is  in  your 
hearts.  The  Greek,  Syriac,  and  Arabian  Versions  give  this  present 
yivwaKeTe,  which  shows  the  Apostles  as  already  having  some  knowledge 
of  the  Father.  It  was  with  the  intention  of  emphasizing  the  fact  that  this 
knowledge  would  also  increase  in  the  future  that  the  author  of  the  Vulgate 
was  led  to  translate  it  by  the  future,  "cognoscetis." 


240  HOLY    WEEK. 

"Lord,"  replied  Philip,  ingenuously,  "show  us  Thy  Father 

and  it  is  enough  fur  us." 

What  did  this  Apostle  expect,  his  mind  absorbed  in 
dreams  of  Jewish  glory  ?  Some  celestial  Apparition  doubt- 
less, some  glimpse  of  Jehovah's  footstool,  sparkling  with 
the  flames  of  sapphire,  some  fiery  vision  which  would 
crown  their  brows  with  a  splendor  like  that  which  Moses 
wore  returning  from  the  mountain  peaks.1  For  all  these 
three  years,  during  which  he  had  followed  the  footsteps  of 
God's  Son,  Philip  had  not  yet  comprehended  that  the 
Christ  was  one  with  His  Father. 

This  blindness  wrung  from  the  Saviour  an  exclamation 
of  grief. 

"  So  long  a  time  have  I  been  with  you,  and  as  yet  thou 
dost  not  know  Me !  Philip,  whoso  seeth  Me  seeth  My 
Father;"  and  He  went  on  to  show  that  His  words  and 
His  deeds  are  so  manifestly  divine  that  they  alone  would 
reveal  in  him  the  Almighty's  Presence. 

Then  addressing  them  all  He  promised  that  He  would 
not  leave  them  orphans;2  that  He  would  return  to  them, 
and,  through  the  Father,  bestow  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  them 
to  be  their  aid.3  This  Spirit  of  Truth  would  remain  forever- 
more  in  their  midst,  communicating  unto  them  such  mighty 
powers  that  they  should  do  the  same  works  as  their  Mas- 

1  Exod.  xxiv.  9,  10  ;  xxxiv.  29. 

2  John  xiv.  18-21. 

3  UapaKXriTOf.  This  word  is  only  employed  by  S.  John  once  in  his 
First  Epistle,  speaking  of  Jesus  (ii.  1),  and  four  times  in  the  account  of 
the  Last  Supper,  speaking  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Three  meanings  have  been 
given  to  it:  (1)  Origen  translates  it  as  The  Comforter,  Uapa/xvdijT^s,  and 
his  opinion  is  adopted  by  many  of  the  Greek  Fathers  ;  but  this  too  limited 
sense  of  the  word  cannot  be  applied  to  the  passage  in  S.  John's  Epistle, 
where  the  Vulgate  very  justly  translates   wapa^XriTos  by   "  advocatum  ;  " 

(2)  Theodore  of  Mopsuesta  proposes  another  interpretation,  —  that  of 
"Founder,    Master;"    but   there   is  nothing   to  justify  his   hypothesis; 

(3)  The  probable  signification  is  thai  of  "Advocate,  Helper,  Aid,"  which 
was  the  one  generally  accepted  by  the  first  Latin  Fathers,  and  is  also  found 
in  Demosthenes  and  Philo.  The  Rabbis,  who  adopted  this  word  into  their 
dialect,   ND'Sp'lD   "  Peraklita,"  construe  it  in  precisely  this  fashion.    We 

take  it,  not  in  the  n&fiow  sense  of  an  advocate  or  counsellor,  but  in  that 
of  a  Helper,  a  Sustainer,  which  applies  equally  to  the  Holy  Spirit  and  to 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 


DISCOURSE  AFTER   THE  LAST  SUPPER.         241 

ter,  and  greater  works  still,1  and  thereafter  everything  that 
they  should  ask  in  His  Name  should  be  granted  them. 
Moreover,  He  promised  them  that,  after  His  Eesurrection, 
they  should  live,  like  Him,  with  a  life  diviue. 

"  I  live  and  you  shall  live.  In  that  same  day  you  shall 
know  that  I  am  in  My  Father  and  you  in  Me  and  I  in 
you." 

The  sole  condition  on  which  they  were  to  receive  these 
gifts  of  grace  was  that  they  observe  the  commandments  of 
the  Lord,  and  thereby  testify  their  love  for  Him. 

"  For  he  who  loveth  Me,"  said  Jesus,  "  shall  be  loved  by 
My  Father  and  I  myself  will  love  Him,  and  I  will  mani- 
fest myself  unto  him."  2 

Here  one  of  the  Twelve  again  interrupted  the  Lord :  it 
was  Judas  (not  the  man  from  Kerioth,  but  Judas  Lebbeus, 
a  cousin  of  Jesus). 

"Master,"  he  asked,  "what  new  thing' is  this  now?1 
How  comes  it  that  you  will  disclose  yourself  to  us,  and  not 
to  the  world  ?  ' 

Evidently  a  grandeur  destitute  of  the  pomp  and  circum- 
stance which  appeal  to  the  senses  did  not  satisfy  the  no- 
tions  which  Judas  had  conceived  of  the  Messiah's  corning 
his  fancy  had  pictured  a  Saviour  robed  in  glory,  the  na- 
tions' awful  Judge,  a  King  and  a  Conqueror,  whose  empire 
should  dazzle  the  wondering  eyes  of  men. 

1  What  would  hereafter  render  their  deeds  so  mighty  as  to  surpass  thosa 
of  Jesus  was  not  so  much  the  number  of  miracles,  but  rather  the  marvel- 
lous elfects  which  followed  upon  them.  After  three  years  of  His  ministry 
Jesus  beheld  but  these  few  disciples  about  Him  ;  and  in  this  same  Supper- 
Room,  after  His  death,  were  gathered  only  one  hundred  and  twenty  faith- 
ful souls  (Acts  i.  15).  On  the  contrary,  when  he  had  preached  but  twice 
to  the  people,  Peter  conquered  eight  thousand  souls,  bringing  them  into 
the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  (Acts  ii.  41  ;  iv.  4)  ;  Paul  quickened  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  earth,  and  the  triumph  of  His  Apostles  shall  con- 
tinue to  grow  daily,  until  all  nations  kneel  in  reverence  before  the 
Christ. 

2  John  xiv.  22-24. 

3  Kvpie,  K.ai  ti  yeyovev ;  "Master,  why!  what  has  happened?"  This 
Kal  is  in  the  Sinaitic  Manuscript,  and  has  been  adopted  by  Tischendorf. 
Placed  before  the  interrogatory  pronoun  it  denotes  astonishment  at  what 
has  first  been  said  (Hartung,  Lehre  von  den  Partikeln  der  Griechischen 
Sprache,  i.  146). 

VOL.  II.  —  16 


2-12  HOLY    WEEK. 

Jesus  did  not  stop  to  shatter  these  illusions,  but  pre 
ferred  to  pursue  His  thought,  simply  saying :  — 

"If  any  one  love  Me,  he  will  keep  My  word  and  My 
Father  will  love  him  and  We  will  come  unto  him,  and  will 
make  Our  abode  in  Him." 

Indeed  this  indwelling  of  God  midmost  His  holy  people 
was  one  of  the  wonders  which  were  to  mark  the  coming  of 
the  Messiah.  The  Jews  had  awaited  this  signal  and,  in- 
stead of  the  Cloud  which  so  long  had  overshadowed  the 
Holy  Place,  they  had  always  looked  to  see  Jehovah  Him- 
self, appearing  in  His  heavenly  splendor  to  abide  in  their 
midst,  according  to  the  promise  delivered  by  the  mouth  of 
Moses.1  Jesus,  giving  this  Prophecy  at  last  its  true  sig- 
nificance, revealed  that  God  thus  abideth  only  in  the  hearts 
of  those  who  love  Him,  who,  for  their  faithfulness,  deserve 
that  He  should  disclose  Himself  to  them. 

The  Master,  however,  could  hardly  have  hoped  that  His 
Apostles  would  as  yet  understand  such  lofty  truths  as  these, 
and,  therefore,  He  added  :  — 

"  I  have  told  you  these  tilings  while  I  was  still  with  you, 
but  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  Comforter,  whom  My  Father  will 
send  in  My  Name,  will  teach  you  all  things  and  bring  back 
all  things  to  your  minds  which  I  have  told  you."  2 

Now  at  last  there  was  nothing  more  for  the  Saviour  to 
do  before  separating  Himself  from  His  own,  and  accord- 
ingly this  farewell  fell  from  His  lips  :  3  — 

"  I  leave  you  My  Peace.  Nor  do  I  give  you  peace  like 
that  which  the  world  giveth.  Let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled,  neither  let  it  be  afraid.  You  have  heard  that 
which  I  said  to  you  :  '  I  go  away,'  but  it  is  only  that  I  may 
return  unto  you.  If  you  loved  Me  you  would  rejoice  for 
that  I  go  unto  My  Father,  because  My  Father  is  greater 

1  Exod.  xxv.  8  ;  xxix.  45  ;  Lev.  xxxi.  11. 

2  'Ywo/xvT)(jet.  v/xds  travra  a  el-rrov  o/j.Ii>  (.John  xiv.  2fi).  "A  elnov  docs  not 
refer  directly  to  inrofivrjcrei.  The  Holy  Spirit  will  give  a  perfect  clearness 
to  the  words  whose  meaning  you  have  grasped  as  yet  only  imperfectly  ; 
He  will  recall,  nay,  even  will  suggest,  "  suggeret  "  (Vulgate),  by  divine 
inspiration,  what  lingers  with  you  only  as  a  nearly  obliterated  memory 
{John  ii.  22;  xii.  16). 

8  John  xiv.  27-31. 


THE   TALK  ON  THE    WAY  TO'  GETHSEMANI.     243 

than  I,"  and  because  I  go  to  find  in  Him  the  power  divine 
which  shall  assure  you  of  your  triumph.  "  And  now  I  tell 
you  this  before  it  come  to  pass,  that  you  may  believe  when 
it  shall  come  to  pass.  I  have  but  a  little  longer  wherein 
I  may  speak  with  you,  for  the  Prince  of  this  world  draweth 
nigh." 

It  was  Judas  whom  the  Lord  denounced  in  this 
manner.  He  beheld  him,  making  his  way  toward  that 
quiet  upper-chamber,  now  finally  possessed  and  mastered 
by  Satan.1 

"  He  eometh,"  exclaimed  the  Saviour,  "  the  Prince  of  this 
world  eometh,  and  notwithstanding  he  hath  no  power  over 
Me !  Yet  this  must  be,  that  so  the  world  may  know  that 
I  love  My  Father,  and  that  I  do  that  which  He  commandeth 
Me." 

Then  rising,  "Come!"  He  said  to  the  Apostles,  "Arise, 
let  us  go  hence  ! " 

The  final  hymns  of  the  Hallel  were  chanted,  all  stand- 
ing; then  Jesus,  followed  by  His  disciples,  started  out 
toward  the  city  gates. 


II.    The  Talk  on  the  Way  to  Gethsemani. 

John  xv.,  xvi.  ;  Matt.  xxvi.  31-35  ;  Mark  xiv.  27-31. 

Jesus  conducted  His  little  company  in  the  direction  of 
the  garden  of  Gethsemani,  where  He  was  accustomed  to 
pray.  Starting  from  the  Supper-Room,  which  lay  on  the 
southern  side  of  Sion,  He  must  have  taken  the  shortest 
road  to  reach  the  Mount  of  Olives,  and  hence  passed  under 
one  of  the  gates  which  stood  open  in  the  southern  quarter 
of  the  town;2  from  thence  they  could  at  once  ascend  Ke- 

1  There  is  good  reason  to  helieve,  indeed,  that  Judas  sought  for  the 
Saviour  hereabouts  before  leading  his  armed  troop  in  the  direction  of 
Gethsemani. 

2  The  Supper- Room  being  near  the  ramparts  which  command  the  valley 
of  Hinnom,  everything  goes  to  support  the  belief  that  Jesus,  instead  of 
crossing  Jerusalem,  whose  streets  were  crowded  with  pilgrims,  and  not 
"wishing  to  descend  to  the  lower  town  in  order  to  reach  S.  Stephen's  Gate, 


244  HOLY    WEEK. 

dron  Valley.  All  along  this  wayside,  which  is  not  far 
from  the  "  Virgin's  Fountain  "  and  that  of  Siloii,  the  neigh- 
boring hill-slopes  of  Mount  Ophel  were  in  those  days  cov- 
ered with  gardens,  and  at  every  step  were  to  be  seen  those 
vineyards  which  inspired  the  Saviour  with  His  last  dis- 
course to  His  disciples.1 

Once  they  had  left  the  city-gates  behind  them  Jesus 
could  taste  the  sweets  of  silence  and  solitude  for  a  little 
longer;  and  so,  upon  the  way  of  sorrows,  He  halted  for  a 
moment,  standing  still  to  look  at  one  of  these  vineyards,  to 
which  He  was  fond  of  likening  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.2 
At  this  season  of  the  year  the  vines  were  still  arrayed  in 
their  leafy  dress  ;  the  branches,  already  pruned  for  the  sec- 
ond time,3  were  strewn  about  the  ground,  some  dried  by 
the  sun  and  piled  up  ready  to  be  burned,  the  remainder 
preserving  some  tokens  of  their  lusty  greenness.    The  moon, 

cho.se  rather  to  depart  by  one  of  the  southern  gates,  and  followed  the  road 
which,  after  skirting  the  Valley  of  Josaphat,  crosses  it  hy  a  bridge  just 
opposite  Absalom's  Tomb.  Moreover,  tradition  points  out  this  route  as 
that  along  which  Jesus  was  carried,  as  a  Captive,  hack  from  Gethsemani  to 
the  palace  of  Annas,  which  stood  not  far  from  the  Supper-Room. 

1  To  hold  that  the  Eucharistie  Cup  suggested  this  comparison  of  the 
vine,  or  to  contend  that  these  last  talks  were  carried  on  in  the  Supper- 
Room,  is  to  make  the  words  "  Rise,  let  us  go  hence,"  utterly  meaningless  ; 
so  also  this  amounts  to  an  entire  misunderstanding  of  the  evident  connec- 
tion existing  between  the  words  which,  according  1<>  the  Synoptic  Writers, 
Jesus  addressed  to  the  Apostles  upon  the  road  to  Gethsemani,  and  the 
final  conversations,  as  reported  by  S.  John  (Matt.  xxvi.  30-35  ;  Mark  xiv. 
27-31  ;  John  xvi.  32).  The  partisans  of  this  opinion  rest  their  argument 
upon  the  first  verse  of  S.  John,  Eighteenth  Chapter  :  TaOrct  diruv,  i%?i\9ei> 
irtpav  tov  x«Mapp°1'  ro"  Kidpov.  But  these  words  do  not  necessarily  imply 
that  at  this  moment  Jesus  departed  from  the  Supper-Room.  'E^\de» 
may  be  referred  to  nepav  tov  x^wov,  and  thus  denote  that  He  did  not 
cross  Kedron  until  after  having  finished  His  prayer.  This  interpretation 
is  not  so  strained  ;is  the  other,  which  understands  the  words,  "  Rise,  let  us 
go  hence,"  in  the  sense  that  they  rose  from  table,  but  did  not  leave  the 
Supper-Room. 

2  Matt.  xxi.  33  ;  Mark  xii.  1,  etc. 

3  The  general  vine-pruning  season  was  toward  the  close  of  autumn 
(Robinson?  Biblical  Researches,  ii.  80)  ;  but  in  March  and  in  April  they 
trimmed  oil'  the  barren  branches.  "  Quum  vitis  tempore  Martii  priinos 
produxerit  botros,  id  ligni  quod  vacuum  est  a  fructu  resecant.  .  .  •  Ex 
pahnite  vitis  in  Martio  relicto,  mense  Aprili  novus  repullulat  surculus,  suos 
quoque  ferens  fructus,  qui  tamen  et  ipse  truncatur"  (Excusta  Dcscrijilio 
Terra  Sander,  Brocardo  auctore,  p.  332.  Comp.  Gottlieb  Buhle,  Calen- 
darium  Palestine  aconomicum). 


THE   TALK  ON  THE   WAY  TO   GETHSEMANI.       245 

which  was  now  high  in  the  heavens,1  or  at  all  events 
the  bonfires,  which  were  always  lighted  at  the  approach 
of  harvest-time,2  shed  a  clear  light  over  the  country. 
Gazing  at  the  vineyard,  Jesus  began  to  speak  to  His 
disciples : — 

"  I  am  the  true  Vine,  My  Father  is  the  Vine-dresser  .  .  . 
you  are  the  branches.  Abide  in  Me  and  I  in  you.  As  the 
branch  cannot  bear  fruit  except  it  be  growing  upon  the 
stock,  so  neither  can  you  bear  fruit  if  you  abide  not  in 
Me."  3 

Dwelling  further  upon  this  comparison,  Jesus  pointed  to 
"  the  barren  brandies,  cut  off  and  thrown  out  of  the  vine- 
yard, heaped  in  bundles  for  the  fire  and  therein  burning 
forevermore." 4  But  for  "  the  branch  that  is  laden  with 
fruit,"  the  heavenly  Vine-dresser  prunes  it,  quickens  it  to 
sturdier  life,"  purges  it,  "  trims  it"  even  of  its  flowers,  when 
the  heavy  blossoms  exhaust  the  plant  and  consume  the 
sweetness  necessary  for  its  fuller  fruitage.5  Again  Jesus 
conjured  them  to  remain  forever  united  to  the  parent-stem 
divine,  His  Holy  Church,  giving  them  the  most  vital  rea- 
sons therefor :  first  of  all,  the  glory  which  they  would  thus 
repay  His  loving  Father ;  then  the  blessed  assurance  that 
all  prayers,  uttered  in  this  unity  of  spirit,  would  be  granted ; 
and  finally  the  joy  they  should  taste  in  this  dear  and  inti- 
mate communion  with  their  Saviour. 

So,  too,  He  bade  them  love  one  another,  after  His  exam- 
ple, even  unto  the  dying  for  each  other.  This,  indeed,  was 
above  all  things  "  His  Commandment,"  for  "  greater  love  no 
man  can  have  than  to  give  up  His  life  to  save  his  friends." 

1  It  was  about  eleven  o'clock  at  night  when  Jesus  started  on  the  road 
leading  to  the  Mount  of  Olives.  Now,  as  the  Paseh  was  always  celebrated 
on  the  fortieth  day  of  Nisan,  the  moon  must  have  been  at  the  full,  and  so 
shone  during  nearly  the  whole  night  (Greswell,  Dissertations,  iii.  192). 

2  Exod.  xxii.  6. 
8  John  xv.  1-17. 

4  The  flames  of  Hell  even  now  rise  before  the  eyes  of  Jesus ;  for  in 
speaking  of  them  He  uses  the  present  form,  /ccu'ercu. 

5  The  fruits  which  the  heavenly  Father  seeks  are  those  that  the  soul 
bears  when  united  to  Jesus  Christ,  regenerated  and,  as  it  were,  grafted 
upon  Him  (avfKpvToi,  Rom.  vi.  5),  exalted  to  that  perfect  state  which 
makes  the  Christian's  actions  so  many  fruits  of  divine  grace. 


246  HOLY   WEEK. 

Proclaiming  this  gracious  message,  the  Saviour  declared 
that  He  had  now  revealed  unto  His  own  all  that  He  had 
learned  of  His  Father ;  that  He  no  longer  treated  them  as 
.servants,  but  as  dear  friends,  as  the  chosen  ones  of  God,  His 
Elect  set  in  His  vineyard  to  grow  and  bring  forth  fruit 
everlasting.1 

And  yet,  though  the  Christian  must  needs  love  all  man- 
kind as  his  brethren,  his  love  must  not  look  for  any  re- 
quital; for  they  shall  be  the  object  of  never-ending  hatred 
from  worldlings.2  Jesus  foretold  the  Apostles  that  this 
hatred  which,  since  His  coming3  was  robbed  of  its  last  ex- 
cuse, would  thenceforth  fasten  itself  upon  all  who  bore  His 
Xanie,  and  in  them  would  wickedly  pursue  His  Father  and 
Himself. 

"  If  the  world  hateth  you,  know  that  it  first  hated  Me. 
If  you  were  of  the  world,  the  world  would  love  its  own, 
but  because  you  are  not  of  the  world,  and  because  I  have 
chosen  you  out  of  the  world's  midst,  therefore  the  world4 
hateth  you.  Remember  that  which  I  said  to  you:  'The 
servant  is  not  greater  than  his  Master.'  As  they  have  per- 
secuted Me,  so  they  will  persecute  you  ;  and  they  will  keep 
your  word,"  He  concluded  sorrowfully, "  even  as  they  have 
kept  Mine ! " 

After  having  thus  forearmed  them  against  persecutions, 
Jesus  disclosed  something  of  the  fierceness  and  fury  of  the 

l"lva  vway-qre  .  .  .  means  the  incessant  development  of  spiritual  life. 
*lva  inray7]Te  .  .  .  iVa  6  tl  Slv  airricrrjTe  .  .  .  5$>.  The  repetition  of  'iva.  in  - 
dicates  the  parallelism,  and  conveys  the  same  sense  :  I  have  so  disposed  of 
all  things  within  you  that  while  continuing  to  grow  you  may  bear  everlast- 
ing fruits,  and  that  your  prayers,  which  shall  supplicate  and  bring  forth 
these  fruits,  may  always  be  granted.  Grace  comes  first  ;  it  incites  the  soul 
to  pray,  and  as  prayer  calls  down  new  and  greater  graces,  so  the  soul 
mounts  upward  from  virtue  to  virtue. 

2  John  xv.  18-27. 

8  In  His  boundless  charity  Jesus  now  tries,  just  as  later  on  upon  the 
Cross,  to  lessen  the  crime  of  His  persecutors,  for  He  recalls  the  fact  that 
they  have  acted  as  blind  men,  "  Not  knowing  Him  who  sent  Him  "  (John 
xv.  21).  But  He  is  obliged  to  confess  that  since  His  coming  and  after  His 
miracles  their  incredulity  is  no  longer  excusable.  In  Him  they  had  hated 
God  the  Father,  and,  according  to  the  Psalmist's  prophecy  (Ps.  xxiv.  19), 
"They  have  hated  Him  without  cause." 

4  The  world  !  How  unceasingly  Jesus  pursues  it  !  Six  times  in  these 
two  verses  the  word  Kucf/mos  recurs  to  His  lips. 


THE   TALK  ON  THE   WAY  TO  GETHSEMANI.      247 

future  trials;1  the  hatred,  born  of  hostile  religions,  more 
implacable  than  any  other,  madly  bent  upon  exterminating 
them  ;  the  synagogues  shut  against  them,  all  men  believing 
that  in  compassing  their  destruction  they  would  be  offering 
an  agreeable  sacrifice  to  God;2  and  these  excesses  were  to 
be  committed  with  all  the  blindness  of  fanaticism. 

"  I  have  told  you  these  things,"  concluded  the  Master, 
"  that  when  the  hour  is  come  you  may  remember  that  I  have 
forewarned  you  of  them.  If  I  told  you  not  from  the  begin- 
ning, it  was  because  then  I  was  still  with  you,  but  now  I 
go  away  unto  Him  that  sent  Me." 

Certainly  this  was  not  the  first  time  Jesus  had  told  His 
flock  of  their  future  persecutions,3  but  never  yet  had  He 
revealed  that  the  whole  world  was  to  be  arrayed  against 
them ;  that  not  only  the  Gentiles,  but  the  children  of  Is- 
rael, would  hold  them  in  abhorrence,  and  that  it  would  be 
deemed  an  act  of  religion  to  put  them  to  death.  So  over- 
whelmed with  grief  were  they  at  this  prediction  that  the 
Lord  speedily  changed  the  tenor  of  His  conversation,  to 
comfort  and  revive  their  souls. 

"  I  go  away,"  He  repeated,4  "  and  now  none  of  you  ask 
Me  where  I  am  going ;  but  because  I  have  said  these  things 
to  you,  sorrow  hath  filled  your  heart.  And  yet,  in  truth,  I 
tell  you  it  is  good  for  you  that  I  go  away,  for  if  I  do  not 
go,  the  Comforter  will  not  come  to  you,  but  if  I  go,  I  will 
send  Him  to  you." 

Then  He  explained  the  Mission  of  this  Divine  Spirit, 
Who  would  come  to  "  convince  the  world  of  sin,  for  that  it 
had  not  believed  in  Jesus,"  and  "to  establish  the  justice" 
of  that  same  Jesus,  "  Who  is  returned  unto  His  Father," 
there  to  find  in  His  bosom  a  glory,  "  such  as  the  eye  of  man 

1  John  xvi.  1-4. 

2  Aarpeia,  a  sacrifice.  The  Syriac,  Arabian,  and  Persian  Versions  so 
translate  this  expression  ;  and,  furthermore,  the  word  irpocrcpipeiv  which 
accompanies  it  is  always  nsed  in  reference  to  the  offering  of  a  victim 
(Matt.  v.  23  ;  viii.  4;  Acts  vii.  42  ;  Hebr.  v.  1).  "Omnis  effundeiis  san- 
guinem  improborum,  reipialis  est  illi  qui  sacrificium  facit "  {Baiaidbar' 
rabba,  f.  239,  1). 

3  Matt.  v.  10  ;  x.  16,  21,  28. 

4  John  xvi.  5-11. 


248  HOLY    WEEK. 

hath  not  conceived  ; "  x  and  "  to  confirm  the  judgment  of  the 
world,  long  since  condemned  in  the  person  of  Satan,  its 
Prince." 

"  I  have  still  many  things  to  say  to  you,"  added  the 
Lord,2  "  but  as  yet  you  cannot  bear  them.  Wherefore 
when  the  Spirit  of  Truth  shall  have  come,  He  will  teach 
you  all  truth  ;3  for  He  shall  not  speak  of  Himself,  but  He 
shall  tell  you  whatsoever  He  shall  hear,  and  future  things 
He  shall  announce  unto  you.  All,  whatsoever  My  Father 
hath,  is  Mine  ;  therefore  said  I  unto  you  that  He  taketh  of 
Mine,4  and  will  announce  unto  you  that  which  He  shall 
take  thereof."  Words  which,  while  .they  reveal  something 
of  the  inner  life  of  God,  likewise  set  before  our  eyes  the 
whole  order  of  the  Trinity,  the  distinction  of  the  Persons, 
and  their  interior  communications.5 

Jesus  dwelt  no  longer  upon  such  exalted  truths,  He  was 
content  to  disclose  but  a  few  beams  of  the  heavenly  light, 
and  then  ended  this  long  talk  with  reminding  them  that 
a  time  of  trial,  as  well  as  a  season  of  consolation,  was  near 
at  hand  : 

"  Yet  a  little  while,  and  you  shall  no  longer  see  Me ; 
again  a  little  while  and  you  shall  see  Me,  because  I  return 
unto  My  Father." 

1  This  explanation,  given  by  S.  John  Chrysostom  and  his  school,  Mal- 
donatus,  Lucas  de  Binges,  etc.,  seems  to  us  preferable  to  any  others  which 
have  been  proposed  ;  a  digest  of  them  may  be  seen  in  father  Corluy, 
Commentariuhi  in  Evungclium  Joannis,  in  loco. 

2  John  xvi.  12-16. 

3  Literally,  "  He  will  guide  you  in  all  the  truth,"  'Odrjyrja-ei  fytcis  els 
irdtxav  ttjv  aXrjdeiav.  The  Apostles  already  possessed  "all  truth"  in  the 
word  of  Jesus,  but  they  had  need  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  guide  their  steps 
into  those  supernatural  regions  whose  existence  the  Master  had  disclosed 
to  them. 

4  "Ek  tou  epiou  Xa/jL/idvei.,  and  not  as  in  the  preceding  verse  \rj\peruL  (nail- 
ing adopted  by  Tischendorf).  This  use  of  the  present,  whereby  is  sug- 
gested the  immutability  of  the  divine  actions,  indicates  that  Jesus  had  no 
longer  in  view  the  temporal  and  finite  action  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  pouring 
forth  from  the  Trinity  what  it  receives  from  the  Word,  but  the  essential 
relations  which  unite  it  to  the  other  Persons  ;  hence,  too,  the  present  forms 
in  8aa  ^xfl  •   •   •   fV&  eanv. 

5  Father  Corluy,  in  his  commentary  on  S.  John,  has  given  a  scholarly 
exposition  of  the  conclusions  which  theology  has  drawn  from  these  dis- 
courses of  Jesus. 


THE  TALK  ON  THE   WAY  TO   GETHSEMANI.     249 

At  this  point,  doubtless,  He  resumed  the  journey  toward 
Gethsemani.  But  the  Apostles,  following  in  His  footsteps, 
were  absorbed  in  a  great  perplexity  over  these  words  He 
had  just  uttered. 

"  What  does  He  mean  to  say  ? "  they  whispered  among 
themselves  : 1  '"  Yet  a  little  while,  and  you  shall  no  longer 
see  Me ;  again  a  little  while,  and  you  shall  see  Me ;  and 
this,  because  I  return  unto  My  Father.' " 

This  "  little  while  "  puzzled  and  disconcerted  them  ;  and, 
indeed,  how  were  they  to  foresee  that  the  Cross  of  Jesus 
was  to  be  His  triumph  ?  Wearied  with  fruitless  conject- 
ure, they  approached  the  Master  to  question  Him  further : 
but  He  forestalled  their  words. 

"You  are  asking  yourselves"  He  said,  "what  this  may 
mean :  '  Yet  a  little  while  and  you  shall  no  longer  see  Me  ; 
a  little  while  and  you  shall  see  Me.'  Of  a  truth  I  say 
unto  you,  you  shall  moan  and  you  shall  weep  for  your  part, 
but  the  world  shall  rejoice  ;  you  shall  be  sad,  but  your  sad- 
ness shall  be  turned  into  joy.  A  woman,  when  she  is  in 
travail,  hath  sorrow,  because  her  hour  is  come,  but  after 
that  she  has  brought  forth  a  son,  she  no  longer  remember- 
eth  her  woes,  because  she  hath  brought  forth  a  man-child 
into  the  world.  And  you  likewise  shall  have  sorrow,  but 
I  will  see  you  again  and  your  hearts  shall  rejoice,  and  your 
joy  no  man  shall  take  from  you." 

Then,  describing  that  gladness  which  was  to  spring  up 
in  their  souls  after  His  Eesurrection,  He  revealed  the  per- 
fectness  of  their  joy  in  terms  which  seem  to  refer  rather  to 
the  glorified  hosts  of  Heaven  than  to  men  living  on  this 
earth  of  ours. 

"  In  that  clay,"  He  said,2  "  you  shall  no  more  question 
Me  concerning  anything.  Of  a  truth,  yea,  of  a  truth  I  say 
unto  you,  if  you  ask  anything  of  My  Father  in  My  Name, 
He  will  give  it  you.  Hitherto  you  have  not  asked  any- 
thing in  My  Name;  ask  and  you  shall  receive,  that  your 
joy  may  be  fulfilled." 

This  prayer  in  the  Name  of  Jesus,  though  impossible 
before  His  glorification,  was  indeed  one  of  the  graces  re- 
1  John  xvi.  17-22.  2  John  xvi.  23,  24. 


250  HOLY  WEEK. 

sewed  for  all  Christian  souls,  who  should  hereafter  own 
the  sway  of  the  Holy  .Spirit,  and  thus  it  would  crown 
their  gladness  by  giving  them  all  power  over  the  heart 
of  God 

And  after  telling  the  Apostles  the  meaning  of  that  say- 
ing, "  that  they  should  see  Jesus  no  more  and  a  little  after 
should  see  Him  again,"  the  Lord  proceeded  to  explain  what 
was  implied  in  that  ''return  unto  His  Father."1 

"  Hitherto,"  He  said,  "  1  have  spoken  to  you  using  figures 
and  parables.  Lo !  1  will  no  longer  speak  in  this  wise; 
but  1  will  tell  you  openly  of  My  Father." 

This  He  did  by  repeating  what  He  had  taught  so  many, 
many  times,  that,  though  He  had  come  as  a  Mau  upon  earth, 
He  nevertheless  abode  always,  as  God, in  the  Father's  Bosom, 
and  that,  having  come  forth  from  Him,  He  might  no  longer 
remain  separated  from  Him.  The  risen  Jesus  would,  there- 
fore, resume  the  glory  which  is  essential  to  Him,  whereby 
also  He  would  draw  humanity  unto  Himself,  having  rees- 
tablished it  in  the  grace  of  God.  And  this  reconciliation 
would  be  so  complete  that  there  would  be  no  more  need 
for  Him  to  pray  to  His  Father  for  them :  the  Father  Him- 
self loveth  them,  because  they  love  the  Christ  and  do 
believe  "  that  He  came  out  from  God." 

"  I  am  come  forth  from  My  Father,"  Jesus  concluded, 
"  and  am  come  into  the  world ;  but  now  I  leave  the  world 
and  I  return  unto  My  Father." 

Whether  or  no  the  disciples  comprehended  these  words 
more  than  imperfectly,2  their  joy  was  great,  however,  at 
hearing  the  Master  praise  their  faith.  They  believed  that 
surely  the  time  had  come  when  all  truth  would  be  made 
self-manifest  and  certain. 

"  In  this  hour,"  they  said,  "  Thou  hast  spoken  plainly  to 
us,  and  dost  no  longer  discourse  in  proverbs.  Now  we 
know  that  Thou  knowest  all  things,  and  needest  not  that 
any  man  should  question  Thee  ;  by  this  we  do  believe  that 
Thou  earnest  forth  from  God." 

i  John  xvi.  25-32. 

2  "  Usque  adeo  non  intelligunt,  ut  nee  saltern  se  non  intelligere  intelli- 
gant.     Parvuli  enira  erant  "  (S.  Augustine,  in  loco). 


THE   TALK  ON  THE   WAY  TO   GETHSEMANI.     251 

"  Yes,  you  believe  now," 1  replied  Jesus,  sadly,  knowing 
all  that  it  had  required  to  arouse  a  spark  of  faith  within 
their  breasts  at  this  last  moment,  "  but  the  time  cometh, 
yea,  is  now  come,  when  you  shall  be  scattered  each  of  you 
unto  your  own  homes,  and  then  you  shall  leave  Me  alone." 
But  speaking  these  words  with  uplifted  eyes  His  glance 
rested  upon  the  nightly  heavens.  "  Alone  !  "  He  said,  as 
though  replying  to  Himself,  "  no,  never  shall  1  be  alone, 
because  My  Father  is  with  Me."  2 

This  prediction,  to  which  Saint  John  devotes  only 
a  passing  word,  is  recorded  much  more  at  length  by 
the  other  witnesses.  It  was  while  they  were  on  the 
road  to  Gethsemani,  says  Saint  Matthew,3  that  Jesus 
addressed  these  words  to  the  disciples  accompanying 
Him. 

"  This  night  I  shall  be  unto  you  all  an  occasion  of  scan- 
dal and  stumbling,  for  it  is  written  :  '  I  will  strike  the 
Shepherd,  and  the  sheep  shall  be  scattered  abroad.'4  But 
after  I  shall  be  risen  again  I  will  go  before  you  into 
Galilee." 

Peter,  already  oblivious  of  the  denial  whereof  the  Master 
only  now  bad  foretold  him,  straightway  cried  out :  — 

"Even  if  all  shall  be  scandalized  because  of  Thee,  yet 
never  will  I."  5 

One  last  time  did  Jesus  warn  him  to  beware  of 
presumption. 

"  Of  a  truth  I  tell  thee  this  :  To-day,  yea,  this  very  night, 
before  the  cock  crow  twice,  thou  shalt  have  denied  Me 
thrice." 

Far  from  humbling  himself  Peter  continued  his  protes- 

1  The  interrogative  form  adopted  by  some  scholars  gives  to  these  words 
an  ironical  tone  which  does  not  seem  befitting  here,  inasmuch  as  the 
Saviour,  in  the  prayer  which  follows  directly  after,  renders  homage  to  the 
faith  of  His  Apostles. 

2  John  xvi.  32. 

3  Matt.  xxvi.  31-35  ;  Mark  xiv.  27-31. 

4  Zach.  xiii.  7.  This  quotation  from  the  Prophet  Zachary  is  borrowed 
from  the  Septuagint  Version  :  the  word  iraTa^w  alone  is  substituted  for 
the  imperative  irard^ov.  Stier  has  clearly  demonstrated  the  Messianic 
character  of  this  Prophecy  (Reden  Jesu,  vi.  176). 

6  Matt.  xxvi.  33-35  ;  Mark  xiv.  29-31. 


252  HOLY   WEEK. 

tations,1  as  it'  he  would  even  belie  the  words  of  the  living 
Truth. 

"  Although  I  must  needs  die  with  Thee  I  will  not  deny 
Thee." 

And  all  the  Apostles,  prompted  by  this  sturdy  example, 
reechoed  his  words. 

Seeing  that  nothing  could  shake  their  eager  self-confi- 
dence Jesus  endeavored  at  least  to  forearm  them  against 
the  discouragement  with  which  the  knowledge  of  their  own 
weakness  would  soon  overwhelm  them,  and  therefore  He 
urged  them,  however  lonely  and  forsaken  they  might  seem 
in  after  days,  to  trust  always  in  Him. 

"  I  have  told  you  these  things  that  in  Me  you  may  find 
peace.  In  this  world  you  will  have  great  griefs ;  but  be 
of  good  courage,  I  have  vanquished  the  world."2 


III.    The  Prayer  of  Jesus. 

John  xvii. 

Jesus  and  His  Apostles  had  now  nearly  arrived  at  the 
lower  bridge  over  which  the  road  to  Gethsemani  crosses 
Kedron.8  This  was  where  the  conversation  took  place 
which  we  have  next  to  recall,  for  we  see  Jesus  immedi- 
ately after  the  prayer  which  followed  it  crossing  the  brook.4 
At  this  point  the  Valley  grows  narrower,  makes  a  rapid 
descent  between  Mount  Moriah  and  the  Mount  of  Olives, 
and  thereafter  is  nothing  but  an  arid  gorge.     No  rivulets 

^^'EKirepio-aws  e\d\ei  (Mark  xiv.  31).  The  imperfect  eXdXet  marks  the 
persistence  wherewith  Peter  repeated  the  same  words  and  multiplied  his 
protestations  ;  this  obstinacy  in  disclaiming  an  imputation  which  the  words 
of  Jesus  laid  against  them  all,  wavres  v,ue'is  tTKafdaXiaOrjffecrOe,  plainly  indi- 
cates that  this  was  not  the  first  time  Jesus  had  warned  him  thereof,  and 
that  already  during  the  Supper,  as  S.  Luke  (xxii.  31-:!  I)  and  S.  John  (xiii. 
38)  narrate,  He  had  cautioned  him  against  trusting  to  his  own  feeble 
courage. 

2  John  xvi.  33. 

3  Robinson,  Biblical  EescarcJict,  vol.  i.  p.  269.  As  to  the  two  bridges 
over  Kedron,  see  Tobler,  Topographic  von  Jerusalem,  b.  ii.  34  if. 

4  John  xviii.  1. 


THE  PRAYER    OF  JESUS.  253 

dashed  down  upon  this  bed  of  rocks ;  only  the  waters  of 
the  Temple,  stained  with  the  blood  of  its  victims,  trickled 
down  hither  amidst  the  lonely  tombs,  which  were  as  thickly 
crowded  then  as  they  are  to-day  all  about  this  region. 
The  Tomb  of  Absalom,  at  which  every  passer-by  still  hurls 
an  avenging  stone,1  recalled  David  fleeing  from  his  rebel- 
lious son,  and  crossing  the  dark  chasm  at  this  very  spot 
where  Jesus  now  stood;  here,  too,  after  being  dragged  from 
the  Sanctuary,  Athaliah  was  slain.2  Kedron,3  the  Val- 
ley of  Shadows,  had  finally  become  a  cesspool  for  the  city, 
where  the  worshippers  of  Jehovah  burned  every  impure 
thing  which  could  possibly  pollute  the  Temple  ;4  an  unhal- 
lowed ground  fit  only  for  nameless  and  dishonorable  sepul- 
tures ;  a  dank  and  dim  ravine,  the  receptacle  for  carrion 
and  ashes ;  the  mighty  Field  of  Death,  as  says  the  Prophet 
Jeremy.5 

From  out  the  darkness  of  this  deep  and  gloomy  gorge 
Jesus  lifted  His  eyes  to  His  Father  on  High,  giving  utter- 
ance to  a  prayer  in  which  He  reveals  all  the  movements 
of  His  Soid  as  the  hour  of  sacrifice  draws  nigh.  In  it  He 
depicts  Himself  standing  between  that  last  Paschal  meal 
and  the  final  offering  of  Calvary,  as  a  Victim,  made  ready 
for  the  sacrificial  knife ;  wherefore  He  offers  Himself,  His 
Apostles,  and  all  those  who  by  faith  are  made  one  with 
Him  in  one  common  oblation  to  God.6 

"  Father,  the  hour  is  come :  glorify  Thy  Son  that  Thy 
Son  may  glorify  Thee,7  and  that  as  Thou  hast  given  Him 

1  Mgr.  Mislin,  IAeux  Saints,  t.  ii.  p.  487. 

2  2  Kings  xv.  23  ;  4  Kings  xi.  16. 

3  Keopuv,  "The  Black  Brook,"  from  its  sullied  and  gloomy  current: 
■p"np,  which  Gesenius  and  Fiirst  derive  from  lip,  "  to  be  black."  Or 
was  it  because  a  fringe  of  cedar-trees  overhung  its  course,  and  so  lent 
their  name  to  it  ?  One  is  tempted  to  fancy  so  from  the  various  forms 
which  this  word  takes  in  the  Greek  text :  x«/"<w>os  rod  Ke'Sp&w  (Alexan- 
drian MS.) ,  tGiv  KeSpwv  (Vatican  MS. ).  rod  Ke8pov  ( Beza's  MS. ).  Teschen- 
dorf has  even  found  in  certain  manuscripts  in  cursive  letters,  tw  b'evb'pwv, 
a  reading  which  has  passed  into  the  Arabian  Version. 

4  2  Paral.  xxix.  16,  xxx.  14  ;  4  Kings  xxiii.  4,  6,  12. 

5  Jer.  xxxi.  40. 

6  John  xvii.  1-5. 

7  That  is  to  say  :  "  Raise  Me  again  unto  life,  so  that  by  Me  Thou  mayest 
be  known  over  all  the  earth  "  (S.  Augustine,  in  loco). 


254  HOLY   WEEK. 

power  over  all  men  He  may  give  eternal  life  to  those 
whom  Thou  hast  given  unto  Him.  Now  this  is  eternal 
life,  to  know  Thee,  Who  art  the  only  true  God,  and 
Jesus  Christ,  Whom  Thou  hast  sent.1  I  have  glorified 
Thee  on  earth ;  I  have  finished  the  work  which  Thou 
gavest  Me  to  do.  And  now  do  Thou,  0  Father,  glorify 
Me  with  the  glory  which  I  have  had  in  Thee  ere  ever 
the  world  was." 

Here  Jesus  ceased  to  pray  for  Himself.  As  their  Victim 
He  had  only  to  complete  His  Sacrifice ;  but  could  He  for- 
get that  all  might  not  leave  the  land  of  sorrows  with  Him  ? 
His  eyes  fell  again  upon  the  Apostles  as  He  reminded 
the  Father  of  all  that  they  had  grown  to  be  through  His 
loving  care.2 

"  I  have  manifested  Thy  Name,"  3  He  pleaded,  "  to  the 
men  whom  Thou  hast  given  Me  by  withdrawing  them 
from  the  world.  Thine  they  were,  and  unto  Me  Thou 
gavest  them,  and  they  have  kept  Thy  word.  Even  now 
they  know  that  everything  Thou  hast  given  Me  cometh 
from  Thee,  because  I  have  given  them  the  words  which 
Thou  didst  give  Me,  and  they  have  received  them ;  and 
they  have  known  of  a  truth  that  I  am  come  forth  from 
Thee,  and  they  have  believed  that  Thou  didst  send  Me.  It 
is  for  them  that  I  pray.4     I  pray  not  for  the  world,  but  for 

1  The  majority  of  Latin  Fathers  translate  this  passage  as  follows  :  "Ut 
cognoscant  Te,  et  quern  misisti,  Jesuin  Christum  unum  verum  Drum." 
Manifestly  their  intention  is  to  attribute  Divinity  to  Jesus  Christ  as  well 
as  to  the  Father.  However,  it  is  unnecessary  to  give  the  original  text  such 
a  roundabout  construction,  for  it  furnishes  the  adversaries  of  the  Godhead 
of  the  Christ  with  no  weapon  of  any  value.  Tbv  nbvov  akTjdivbv  Geo^,  does 
not  signify  that  the  Father  alone  is  the  true  God,  but  that  He  is  the  true 
and  only  God  ;  and  Jesus  by  placing  Himself  beside  Him,  by  attributing 
to  Himself  a  power  equal  to  His,  by  proclaiming  that  as  God  gives  life 
everlasting,  so  also  does  He,  and  that,  like  God,  He  is  the  life  everlasting, 
—  He  the  Man-God  declares  Himself  God  even  as  is  the  Father. 

2  John  xvii.  6-19. 

3  God's  Name,  "Jehovah,"  was  an  object  of  such  fear  to  the  Jews  that 
they  dared  not  pronounce  it,  and  in  its  stead,  whenever  it  occurred  in  the 
Sacred  Text,  used  the  word  Adonai.  Jesus,  dissipating  these  mists  of  ter- 
ror (dearly  revealed  that  the  true  inwardness  of  the  Divine  Being,  His  real 
Name,  lies  essentially  in  His  Fatherhood  and  the  Love  He  bears  us. 

4  'Epwrw  denotes  the  prayer  of  an  equal  to  an  equal  (Trench,  Synonyms 
of  the  New  Testament,  p.  137). 


THE  PRAYER   OF  JESUS.  255 

those  whom  Thou  hast  given  Me,  because  they  are  thine, 
and  because  I  am  glorified  in  them  (for  all  that  is  Mine  is 
also  Thine  and  all  Thine  is  likewise  Mine).  And  now  I 
am  no  longer  in  the  world,  I  come  to  Thee ;  but  for  them, 
they  are  yet  in  the  world.  Holy  Father  preserve  these 
forever  faithful  in  confessing  Thy  Name,  which  Thou  hast 
given  unto  Me"1  to  reveal  to  them,  "so  that  thus  they 
may  be  one,  even  as  We  are  one.  While  I  was  with 
them  in  the  world  I  guarded  them  faithfully,  united  in 
that  Name  which  Thou  gavest  Me.  I  have  guarded  them, 
and  no  one  of  them  has  perished,  save  only  the  child  of 
perdition,2  that  the  Scripture  might  be  fulfilled.  Now  I 
come  to  Thee,  and  I  say  these  things,  being  yet  in  the 
world,  that  they  may  have  within  them  the  fulness  of  My 
joy.  I  have  given  them  My  word,  and  the  world  hath 
hated  them,  because  they  are  not  of  the  world,  as  I  also 
am  not  of  the  world.  I  pray  not  that  Thou  shouldest  take 
them  from  the  world,  but  that  Thou  shouldest  keep  them 
from  evil.  They  are  not  of  the  world,  as  I  am  not  of  the 
world.  Consecrate  them  unto "  the  preaching  of  "  the 
Truth,  that  truth  which  is  Thy  Word.3  As 'Thou  hast 
sent  Me  into  the  world  so  I  have  sent  them  into  the 


1  ''Erripovu  avroiis  iv  t£  ovofxari  aov  to  5e5wK<is  fj.oi  (John  xvii.  11).  The 
reading  #  which  we  adopt  here  is  supported  by  the  authority  of  the  MSS. 
of  Sinai,  the  Vatican,  Ephrsem,  and  the  Alexandrian  Codex.  The  other 
form  oiis,  as  the  Vulgate  translates  it,  is  found  only  in  Beza's  Codex  and  a 
few  Versions  ;  <£  is  put  by  attraction  for  o  and  refers  to  dvofiart :  Keep 
them  in  that  Name  which  Thou  has  given  Me  ;  that  is,  faithful  in  confess- 
ing the  Name,  —  the  Truth  which  I  have  revealed  to  them.  In  the  fol- 
lowing verse  we  keep  this  same  reading  <£  as  found  in  the  MSS.  of  the 
Vatican  and  of  Kphrsem,  although  very  many  Versions  have  oOs  SeowKas  /jloi, 
for,  as  Father  Corluy  observes  {Commcntarius  in  Joannem,  p.  379),  there 
is  every  reason  to  believe  that  S.  John  did  not  write  oiis  in  one  verse  and  <£ 
in  the  other. 

2  Employing  a  manner  of  speaking  very  common  in  Hebrew,  Jesus  here 
calls  Judas  "Son  of  Perdition"  in  order  to  declare  that  by  his  volun- 
tary depravity  he  is  already  as  closely  allied  to  Hell  as  is  a  son  to  his 
father. 

3  John  xvii.  17.  "  Segrega  eos  verbo  et  predicationi  (S.  Joannes  Chry- 
sostomus).  Qui  sensus  apprime  convenit  contextie  orationi.  Sic  petit 
Christus  ut  Pater  Apostolos,  a  mundo  segregates,  idoneos  faciat  et  conse- 
cret  evangelicse  doctrinse  predicandi  ministros  "  (P.  Corluy,  Gommentarius 
in  Joannem,  in  loco). 


256  HOLY    WEEK. 

world,  and  for  them  do  I  sacrifice  Myself,1  that  so  they 
may  be  consecrated  "  for  the  preaching  "  of  the  Truth."  2 

Whereupon  the  Saviour  in  His  prayer  swept  the  wide 
limits  of  His  whole  Church,8  beseeching  three  gifts  of  grace 
for  her,  —  Unity  in  faith  and  love,  the  Eucharist,  and  the 
glory  of  Heaven. 

"  I  pray  not  for  them  only,"  He  said,  "  but  for  those  also 
who,  through  their  word,  shall  believe  in  Me,4  that  they 
all  may  be  one,  as  thou,  Father,  art  in  Me  and  I  in  Thee  ; 
that  they,  likewise,  may  be  one  in  Us,  in  order  that  the 
world  may  believe  that  Thou  hast  sent  Me ;  and  the  glory 
which  Thou  hast  given  Me  5  I  have  given  unto  them,  that 
they  may  be  one,  even  as  We  are  one,  —  I  in  them  and 
Thou  in  Me,  —  and  that  they  may  be  made  perfect  in  one  ; 
that  thus  the  world  may  know  that  Thou  hast  sent  Me, 
and  that  Thou  hast  loved  them  as  Thou  hast  loved  Me." 

It  was  the  Eucharist  to  which  Jesus  alluded  in  these 
mystical  terms,  and  it  was  His  good  pleasure  that  those 
who  are  given  to  Him  to  be  His  own  should  be  likewise 
partakers  of  His  blessedness. 

"  Father,'!  will  that  there  where  I  am,  there  those  whom 
Thou  hast  given  Me  may  be  also  with  Me,  that  so  they  may 
behold  the  glory  Thou  hast  given  Me,  because  Thou  hast 

1  'Ayi&fa  ifj.avTou  indicates  the  sacerdotal  act  whereby  Jesus  offers 
Himself  as  a  Victim  upon  the  Cross :  Upoa-^epu  aoi  Ovcrtav  (S.  John 
Chrysostom). 

-  "He  adds:  'I  sanctify  Myself  for  them,'  speaking  these  words  for 
His  Apostles,  that  even  as  they  participate,  through  His  Ministry,  m  the 
graces  of  His  Priesthood,  so  at  the  same  time  they  may  share  in  His  state 
as  a  Victim,  and  thus,  though  they  have  no1  of  themselves  the  sanctity 
which  is  necessary  to  make  them  fitting  Envoys  and  Messengers  of  Jesus 
Christ,  yet  this  they  shall  find  in  Him"  (Bossuet,  Meditations  sur  I'F.run- 
gile :  La  CfeNE,  iie  partie,  lviejour.). 

3  John  xvii.  20-26. 

4  The  present  wio-TevdvTuv,  found  in  the  Syriac,  Coptic,  and  Gothic  Ver- 
sions, and  in  many  MSS.,  shows  that  Jesus' had  in  mind  the  whole  body 
of  faithful  at  the  moment  He  uttered  this  prayer  :  He  beholds  them  ;  they 
believe  in  Him. 

5  "  Claritas  est  divinitatis  quam  Christus  modo  suis  communicavit, 
dando  eis  SS.  Eucharistiam.  Sic.  enirn  eamdem  carnem  suam  carni  fidel- 
ium  univit,  et  per  eamdem  eis  divinitatem  suam  univit,  trade  onnies  in 
Christo  excellentissirne  inter  se  uniantur.  .  .  .  Ita  SS.  Cyrillus,  Hilarius, 
etc."  (Corluy,  Cornmentarius  in  Joannem,  in  loco). 


THE  PRAYER   OF  JESUS.  257 

loved  Me  before  the  foundation  of  the  world.  Just  Father, 
the  world  knew  Thee  not,  but  1  have  known  Thee,  and 
these  have  known  that  Thou  didst  send  Me.  I  have  made 
known  Thy  Name  unto  them,  and  I  will  still  make  it 
known  unto  them,  that  so  the  love  wherewith  Thou  lovest 
Me  may  be  in  them  and  I  in  them." 

There  was  now  naught  that  Jesus  could  give  them  which 
He  had  not  given  them;  accordingly,  having  ended  His 
prayer,  He  crossed  Brook  Kedron. 


VOL.  II.  —  W 


BOOK    SEVENTH. 


THE  PASSION 


AND    THE 


RESURRECTION   OF  JESUS. 


RATA    MAGeAION. 

k£'.    v8'. 

'O  Se  tKaTovTap^os  koI  oi  fier  avrov  TrjpovvT€<;  rov  Ir]o~ovv}  I86v- 
t«s  rov  tmaytov  /cat  to.  ywojAcva,  £<f>oj3-ijBr)o~av  cr^wSpa,  Xeyovres' 
'AXrjdws  CYI02  ©EOY  ?jv  oStos. 


€f)e  €c£timonp  of  ^am 


JVbw;  £/ie  Centurion  and  they  that  were  with  him  watching 
Jesus,  having  seen  the  earthquake  and  the  things  that  were 
done,  were  sore  afraid,  saying :  — 

u  Indeed   this  was   THE  SON  OF  GOD!" 


SAINT  MATTHEW. 
xxvii.  54. 


THE    PASSION    AND    THE    RESURRECTION 
OF   JESUS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

JESUS   IN   THE  GARDEN    OF   OLIVES. 
John  xviii.  1-13  ;  Matt.  xxvi.  36-56  ;  Mark  xiv.  32-52  ;  Luke  xxii.  39-53. 

On  the  further  side  of  Kedron,  at  the  foot  of  the  hill- 
side, there  lies  a  garden  overshadowed  by  olive-trees,1  and 
called  Gethsemaui,2  because  of  an  olive-press  which  for- 
merly stood  there.  Nothing  disturbed  the  solitude  of  this 
region,3  where  the  Saviour  was  accustomed  to  pass  the 

1  Were  those  seven  ancient  olive-trees  still  standing  in  this  garden  wit- 
nesses of  the  Agony  of  Jesus  Christ  ?  Their  gnarled  and  twisted  trunks, 
the  sparse  foliage  which  clings  to  their  houghs,  their  old  age,  regarded  with 
veneration  from  century  to  century,  everything  indeed  allows  us  to  believe 
as  much.  It  is  true  that  Titus  had  all  the  trees  round  about  Jerusalem 
cut  down  ;  but  he  attacked  the  town  from  the  north,  and  Josephus  states 
expressly  that  it  was  the  space  between  Mount  Scopus  and  Herod's  Tomb 
which  was  ravaged  by  the  Romans.  The  Second  Legion  coming  up  from 
Jericho  remained  looking  on  from  Mount  Olivet  ;  and  the  soldiers  who 
raised  a  wall  parallel  with  the  Brook  did  not  go  down  into  the  bottom  of 
the  valley  where  they  would  have  been  overwhelmed  by  a  shower  of  arrows 
from  the  ramparts  (Josephus,  Bcllum  Juda'icum,  v.  12,  2).  Hence  it  is 
quite  possible  that  these  venerable  olive-trees  should  have  survived  that 
period  of  destruction. 

2  nj,  a  press  ;    VOVf,  olive. 

3  Does  the  word  xo}P'LOV  (Mark  xiv.  32)  imply  that  the  garden  contained 
a  dwelling  ?  Neither  Scripture  nor  Tradition  indicates  anything  of  the 
kind  ;  they  only  tell  us  of  the  loneliness  of  those  places  whither  Jesus 
loved  to  retire,  of  a  cave  where  He  faced  His  Agony  alone,  and  this  is  still 
held  in  veneration,  being  near  the  Tomb  of  the  Virgin. 


262     THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

night-time  whenever  He  did  not  return  to  Bethany  in  the 
early  evening.1  Judas  was  well  aware  of  this  secluded  re- 
treat, for  a  few  hours  later  he  led  the  hand  sent  in  search 
of  the  Divine  Master  unhesitatingly  in  this  direction. 

Hardly  had  Jesus  entered  the  garden  when  He  felt  the 
awful  throes  of  an  anguish,  like  the  first  icy  chills  of  the 
death  struggle. 

"  Sit  ye  here,"  He,  said  to  His  disciples,  "  while  I  will 
go  yonder  and  pray."2  There  is  a  rock  still  pointed  out, 
near  the  gateway  of  the  garden,  where  Tradition  says  the 
Apostles  found  a  resting-place. 

The  Saviour  took  with  Him  Peter,  James,  and  John,  to 
whom  He  had  promised  that  they  should  drain  the  cup  of 
His  grief;3  so  now  He  led  them  under  the  black  shadows 
of  the  olive  orchard  into  the  dimmest  corner  of  the  garden.4 
Never  had  His  Apostles  seen  Him  plunged  in  such  sad- 
ness as  this;6  terror,  dejection,  something  like  a  stupor, 
says  Saint  Mark,  seized  his  soul.  And  here  He  stopped 
His  companions. 

"  My  Soul,"  He  groaned,  "  is  sorrowful  even  unto  death  ! 
wait  here,  watch  and  pray  ! " 

Then  withdrawing  from  them  about,  a  stone's  throw  6  He 
fell  upon  His  knees,  His  head  bowed  down  till  His  face 
pressed  the  ground,  while  He  prayed  that  if  it  were  possi- 
ble this  hour  might  pass  from  Him. 

1  John  xviii.  2. 

2  Matt.  xxvi.  36,  37. 

3  Matt.  xx.  23. 

4  Alford  has  noted  the  fact  that  at  this  hour  of  the  night  one  portion  of 
Kedron  Valley  must  have  been  exposed  to  the  light  of  the  moon,  while 
Mount  Moriah  threw  its  shadow  over  the  rest  of  the  region.  Doubtless 
Jesus  withdrew  into  its  gloomiest  recesses. 

5  Here  the  words  from  the  Evangelists'  pen  crowd  fast  upon  each  other 
as  they  endeavor  to  express  the  sorrows  of  Jesus.  Avireladai  (Matt.  xxvi. 
37)  is  sadness  ;  adrjuovuv  (Matt.  xxvi.  37  ;  Mark  xiv.  33)  is  that  excess  of 
sadness  which  overpowers  the  soul  with  grief,  plunging  it  into  such  heart- 
heaviness  as  when,  discouraged  and  weary  of  all  things,  the  spirit  sinks 
down  shuddering  and  dismayed  (Euthymins,  in  loco;  Hesychius ;  Suidas, 
Lexicon).  S.  Mark  completes  the  picture  with  a  mighty  stroke  :  'EkOcl/x- 
f}et(T0ai,  "Dixit  incursum  objecti  horribilis"  (Beiigel,  Gnomon,  in  loco), 
aghast,  affrighted,  the  stupor  becoming  gradually  only  a  sense  of  terror 
and  dejection. 

6  Luke  xxii.  41. 


JESUS  IN  THE   GARDEN  OF  OLIVES.  263 

"  Father,  all  things  are  possible  to  Thee ;  take  away  this 
cup  from  Me,"1  this  cup  of  anguish,  wherein  He  tasted 
beforehand  all  the  bitterness  of  His  Passion.  So  greatly 
did  Jesus  suffer  that  He  shrank  from  enduring  any  more 
as  yet,  and  so  for  a  long  while  2  He  remained  motionless, 
only  beseeching  the  Father  to  grant  Him  sufficient  strength 
and  comfort.  And,  at  the  last,  His  words  were  words  of 
resignation. 

""Let  Thy  will,  not  Mine,  be  done  !  " 

Then  He  returned  to  the  disciples,  craving  some  relief 
for  His  trouble ;  yet  it  only  resulted  in  making  the  sense 
of  His  loneliness  and  abandonment  more  vivid  and  over- 
powering. There  was  not  one  human  heart  to  watch  with 
Him  or  to  take  compassion  on  His  anguish.  Peter,  the 
intrepid  champion  of  a  few  hours  back,  James,  despite  all 
his  sturdy  courage,  and  John,  the  well-beloved,  every  one 
of  them  was  sleeping,  notwithstanding  all  the  love  they 
bore  Him,  Who  was  racked  with  anguish  almost  before 
their  very  eyes,  —  Who  had  besought  them  not  to  leave 
Him  alone,  but  to  uphold  and  sustain  Him  by  their 
presence ! 

Addressing  the  most  presumptuous  of  those  three  :  — 

"  Simon,"  He  said,  "  so,  thou  sleepest !  Couldst  thou  not 
then  watch  one  hour  with  Me  ?  Watch  ye  and  pray  that 
you  enter  not  into  temptation ;  the  spirit  is  willing,  but 
the  flesh  is  weak."3 

The  disciples  saw  Him  withdraw  from  them  again,  once 
more  casting  Himself  down,  and  in  the  dust  exhausting 
Himself  in  the  throes  of  His  awful  Agony,  while  His  lips 
still  murmured  the  same  prayer  as  before. 

"  Father,  if  this  Chalice  cannot  pass  except  I  drink  it, 
Thy  will  be  done."  4 

Soon  weariness  once  more  overweighted  their  eyelids, 
and  returning  Jesus  found  them  for  the  second  time 
asleep.     "  They  knew   not   what   to   answer   Him,"   says 

1  Mark  xiv.  35,  36. 

2  The  rebuke  the  Lord  addressed  to  Peter  (Mark  xiv.  37)  shows  that 
this  first  prayer  lasted  one  whole  hour. 

3  Mark  xiv.  37,  38. 

4  Matt,  xxvi,  42. 


264      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Saint  Mark.1  The  Saviour  left  them  for  the  last  time;  it 
was  to  engage  in  that  mightiest  combat  of  all,  the  one 
which  Saint  Luke  has  recounted.2 

What  transpired  in  that  dread  hour  within  the  Soul  of 
the  Christ  ?  Was  Hell  let  loose  upon  the  Lamb  Who 
bore  the  sins  of  the  world  ?  Did  it  hope,  with  the  weight 
of  all  wicked  deeds,  past  and  future,  to  crush  this  Jesus, 
before  Whose  eyes  was  now  marshalled  the  whole  empire 
of  evil,  far  up  and  down  the  ages?  But  this  is  no  place 
for  such  conjectures.  All  that  we  may  know  is  that  in  this 
trial  not  only  were  the  Saviour's  eyes  wet  with  bitter  woe, 
but  tears  of  blood  poured  from  His  limbs.  "  And,  as  He 
was  torn  with  His  Agony,  there  came  a  sweat  upon  Him, 
like  drops  of  blood  trickling  down  upon  the  ground."3 

Jesus  did  but  pray  the  more  ardently,  evermore  repeat- 
ing the  same  words  :  — 

"  Father,  if  this  Chalice  may  not  pass  except  I  drink  it, 
let  Thy  will  be  done  !  " 

This  blood,  these  tears,  His  suppliant  cries,  ascended 
unto  God.4  At  the  voice  of  the  spotless  Victim  of  love 
Heaven,  which  had  been  closed  against  sin-stained  human- 
kind since  Adam,  now  threw  wide  its  gates,  and  an  Angel 
descended  thence  to  strengthen  and  console  the  Saviour. 
And  Jesus  rose  up,  once  again  stronger  than  His  sorrow, 
"  knowing  all  things  that  were  to  come  upon  Him,"  5  yet 

1  Mark  xvi.  40. 

2  Luke  xxii.  43,  44. 

3  'E7eVero  6  tSpws  clvtov  thcrel  6p6p,[3oi  aifj.ci.Tos  Kara^aivovTes  eiri  rr\v  yrjv 
(Luke  xxii.  44).  Theophylactus  and  Euthyruius  understand  by  these 
words  that  sweat  poured  from  the  body  of  Jesus  in  drops  as  great  and  as 
copious  as  blood.  But,  for  the  most  part,  commentators  have  taken  the 
text  in  its  natural  sense,  and  as  indicating  an  actual  sweat  of  blood;  uxrei 
shows  that  he  does  not  refer  to  an  ordinary  sweat,  and  its  complement 
a'ifxaros  points  out  precisely  its  peculiar  nature  :  idpws  ai/J.a.Toei5r)s  (Diodo- 
rus  of  Sicily,  xvii.  90).  Furthermore,  the  word  chosen  to  express  these 
drops  is  not  the  ordinary  expression  araywv,  ardXay/jia,  but  the  word 
8p6fx(3os,  which  is  the  term  oftenest  used  to  denote  a  clot  of  blood  (see 
Passow,  HandwSrterbuch).  As  to  the  possibility  of  the  fact  much  weighty 
testimony  lias  been  collected  by  .Meyer,  Alford,  etc.,  to  prove  that  the 
human  body  under  the  stress  of  violent  emotion  has  more  than  once  been 
found  covered  with  a  blood}7  sweat. 

*  Hebr.  v.  7. 
6  John  xviii.  4. 


JESUS  IN  THE    GARDEN  OF   OLIVES.  265 

none  the  less  calmly  awaiting  the  hour  of  torture  and 
death. 

Then  He  returned  to  His  slumbering  disciples.  They 
had  failed  in  the  duty  entrusted  to  them  of  watching  be- 
side their  Master  in  His  Agony,  and  this  their  sole  privi- 
lege was  lost  to  them  forever.  But  the  Saviour  addressed 
them  in  words  wherein  tenderness  is  marvellously  mingled 
with  reproach  fulness. 

"  Sleep  on  now  and  take  your  rest ; " 1  there  is  no  more 
time  for  watching  with  Me  hereafter.  Then,  as  tokens  of 
the  arrival  of  Judas  began  to  break  in  upon  His  words,  — 

"  It  is  enough,"  He  added  ;  "  the  hour  is  come  wherein  the 
Son  of  Man  is  about  to  be  delivered  into  the  bands  of  sin- 
ners ;  rise  up,  come  !  lo,  he  that  will  betray  Me  is  at  hand  !  " 

Jesus  was  still  speaking  when  at  the  foot  of  the  garden 
appeared  an  armed  band  bearing  swords  and  staves.  It 
was  a  Soman  tribune  with  his  legionaries,2  accompanied 
by  a  crowd  of  Jews  of  every  rank  and  condition,  officers  of 
the  Sanhedrin,  Temple-guards,3  the  serving-people  of  the 
High-Priests, — a  motley  assemblage  at  whose  head  marched 
Judas,  "  one  of  the  Twelve." 4  Torches  flared  and  lan- 
terns 5  glimmered  in  every  direction  over  the  heads  of  the 
multitude. 

1  Matt.  xxvi.  45,  46.  Maldonatus,  following  the  interpretation  of 
Euthymius,  thinks  that  these  words  have  an  ironical  turn,  which,  to  our 
minds,  seems  scarcely  likely  at  such  a  moment  and  upon  such  lips. 
Rather,  with  S.  Augustine  and  S.  John  Chrysostom,  Ave  like  to  think 
they  were  uttered  in  a  tone  full  of  tenderness  and  sorrow  :  "  Verba  indul- 
gentis  eis  jam  somnum  "  (S.  Augustine). 

2  Matt.  xxvi.  47  ;  John  xviii.  3.  'H  airelpa  nai  6  x<Mapx0S  (John  xviii. 
12)  :  "The  tribune  and  his  cohort,"  — not  that  he  had  with  him  an  entire 
cohort,  which  was  composed  of  five  or  six  hundred  men,  but  a  detachment 
of  legionaries  commanded  by  a  tribune. 

3  A  little  later  we  shall  see  their  officers,  (TrpaTTjyovs  rod  iepov  (Luke 
xxii.  52),  step  forth  from  the  shadows,  in  order  to  oversee  their  move- 
ments. The  guardianship  of  the  Temple  was  entrusted  to  a  body  of  armed 
Levites  (1  Paral.  ix.  19  ;  xxvi.  i.  19),  whose  commander-in-chief  bore  the 
name  of  Captain  of  the  Temple  (Acts  iv.  1,  v.  24  ;  Josephus,  Antiquitates, 
xx.  6,  2  ;  Bellum  Judaicum,  vi.  5,  3  ;  Middoth,  i.  2). 

4  The  Synoptic  Writers  all  give  him  this  title,  which  makes  us  realize 
the  horror  of  his  crime  more  deeply. 

5  They  had  come  out  with  torches  and  lanterns,  though  the  moon  was 
at  its  full,  for  they  knew  what  was  the  darkness  of  this  place  where  Jesus 
went  to  suffer  His  Agony. 


266       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Arrived  at  Gethsemani  they  halted  near  the  garden,  to 
arrange  measures.  Judas  reminded  them  that  a  kiss  was 
the  sign  agreed  upon1  to  indicate  the  Saviour,  Whom  they 
were  forthwith  to  seize  and  hurry  away,  —  cautiously,- 
however,  for  fear  of  His  supernatural  powers.2 

While  they  were  thus  lingering  in  consultation,  of  a  sud- 
den the  Master  appeared ; 3  at  sight  of  Him  Judas  hesi- 
tated ;  all  his  plot  seemed  to  fall  to  the  ground. 

"  Whom  do  you  seek  ? "  said  Jesus. 

The  Apostle  and  those  who  like  him  knew  the  Saviour 
were  silent  and  dumlbunded  at  finding  their  purpose  an- 
ticipated. But  the  rest,  seeing  Judas  speechless  and  mo- 
tionless in  the  midst  of  them,4  and  perchance  thinking 
that  the  newcomer  was  only  some  stranger,  responded  at 
once,  — 

"  Jesus  of  Nazareth." 

"  1  am  He,"  the  Saviour  said. 

Terrified  they  one  and  all  recoiled  and  fell  at  His  feet5 

"  Whom  do  you  seek  ? "  again  Jesus  demanded. 

At  last  they  knew  Who  He  was,  that  stood  before  them ; 
still  they  durst  not  say,  "  Thyself,"  but  answered  only,  — 

"  Jesus  of  Nazareth." 

"  I  have  already  told  you,  it  is  I,  Jesus  of  Nazareth." 

For  the  second  time  the  Christ  delivers  Himself  into 

1  Hvaarj/xov  (Mark  xiv.  44). 

2  Acr^aXcDs  (Mark  xiv.  44). 

3  'Irjaovs  e!;r)\dev  (John  xviii.  4).  These  words  do  not  state  that  Jesus 
went  out  of  the  garden,  but  that  He  walked  forward  :  "Processit"  (Vul- 
gate). 'E^-qXdeiv  has  often  this  meaning  in  classical  Greek  and  in  the  New 
Testament  (Matt.  xiv.  14,  etc.). 

4  EiffTij/cet  /act  ainQv  (John  xviii.  5). 

6  Some  Protestant  scholars  (Liicke,  Tholuck,  Olshausen,  Ewald)  prefer  to 
consider  this  fall  as  merely  the  natural  consequence  of  their  sudden  alarm. 
They  recall  the  fact  that  Mark  Antony  (Valerius  Maximus,  viii.  9,  2), 
Marius  (Velleius  Paterculus,  ii.  19,  3),  and  CoHgny,  disarmed  their  mur- 
derers by  the  terror  of  their  name  and  of  their  glance.  Meyer  replies  very 
reasonably  that  here  it  was  not  a  question  of  intimidating  a  few  hired  as- 
sassins, but  of  overthrowing  an  entire  troop  by  the  utterance  of  a  single 
word  ;  and  in  this  fact  there  is  something  so  strange  that  we  are  justified 
in  regarding  it,  with  the  Fathers,  as  a  veritable  miracle.  This  opin- 
ion is  shared  moreover  by  many  exegetical  critics  among  Protestants 
(Ebrard,  Maier,  Luthardt,  Hengstenberg),  and  generally  by  Catholic 
authors. 


JESUS  IN  THE   GARDEN   OF  OLIVES.  267 

their  hands  by  these  words,  but  even  now  He  does  not 
forget  His  own. 

"  Then  if  you  are  seeking  Me,"  He  added,  "  let  these  go 
their  way." 

In  the  depth  of  His  humiliations  and  in  the  clutches  of 
His  foes,  He  still  decrees  how  far  their  violence  may  ven- 
ture, and  this  limit  they  must  needs  respect.  Thus  was 
fulfilled  the  Saviour's  promise  to  His  flock,  when  He  said, 
"  Father,  I  have  lost  no  one  of  them  that  Thou  hast  given 
Me." 

But  there  must  be  an  end  to  this  paltering  and  hesita- 
tion ;  the  soldiers  and  the  tribune,  dismayed  at  what  had 
just  occurred,  now  looked  at  Judas,  as  if  waiting  for  the 
covenanted  signal.  Hastily  the  traitor  approached  His 
Lord. 

"  Master,  Master,1  hail ! "  he  said,  and  his  lips  touched 
the  cheek  of  the  Christ.2 

"Judas,"  the  Saviour  replied,  "  friend,  is  it  for  this  that 
thou  art  here  ?3  to  betray  the  Son  of  Man  with  a  kiss  !" 

Immediately  the  soldiers   came  up  and   seized  Jesus.4 

1  Mark  xiv.  45.  This  repetition  is  not  to  be  found  either  in  the  Vul- 
gate or  in  the  MSS.  of  Sinai,  the  Vatican,  Ephrsem,  or  Beza  ;  but  we 
read  it  in  the  Alexandrian  Codex,  in  the  Received  Text,  while  it  gives 
such  a  vivid  effect  to  the  scene  that  we  felt  it  was  not  right  to  omit  it. 

2  KaTe<pl\t](T€v  avrbv  (Mark  xiv.  45).  The  traitor  embraced  the  Saviour 
with  great  show  of  feeling,  in  order  to  designate  Him  from  the  rest  more 
surely.  De  Wette,  Stier,  etc.,  look  upon  KaTa(pi\e?v  as  simply  a  synonym 
of  <pi\e?v,  but  there  is  nothing  to  prove  that  in  Hellenistic  Greek  it  had 
lost  the  sense  which  it  had  in  classical  authors  :  w<r  tovs  /xeu  kclXovs 
(piXrjcravTos  fxov,  tovs  5'  dyadovs  KaTacpCKrjaavTos  (Xenophon,  Memorabilia,  ii. 
6,  33). 

3  'E<f>  6'  irdpei  (Matt.  xxvi.  50).-  We  find  no  example  for  the  relative 
6's  used  in  direct  interrogation.  Ought  we,  with  Winer,  to  regard  this  as 
a  way  of  speaking  peculiar  to  Hellenistic  Greek,  or,  with  Euthymius,  as 
prompted  by  reticence  :  "Friend  .  .  .  this  is  why  thou  art  come  ;"  that  is 
to  say,  "Accomplish  thy  designs,  putting  aside  all  useless  preliminaries"  ? 
The  reading  found  in  some  manuscripts  of  the  Vulgate:  "Ad  quod 
venisti,"  goes  to  support  this  construction.  Still  we  believe  it  better  to 
take  the  words  in  the  sense  given  them  by  the  Syriac  Version  and  the  Vul- 
gate :  "Friend,  art  thou,  then,  come  hither  for  such  a  crime  ?"  "Amice, 
ad  quod  venisti  ? "     (Vulgate.)     "  Ob  id  venisti,  socie  mi  ? "     (Syriac.) 

4  SS.  Chrysostom  and  Cyril,  Theophylactus,  and  Euthymius  agree  in 
putting  the  events  in  the  order  in  which  we  have  related  them.  The 
tiWws  TrooaeXOujv  in  S.  Matthew  (xxvi.  49)  alone  would  seem  to  indicate 


268      THE  PASSION  AND  resurrection  OE  JESUS. 

The  Apostles  were  still  around  Him  and  holding  their  two 
swords  drawn  and  ready;  seeing  what  was  about  to  hap- 
pen, one  of  them  cried,  — 

"  Master,  shall  we  strike  at  them  ? " 

At  the  same  instant  the  blade  in  Simon's  hand  flashed 
in  the  torchlight  and  glanced  above  the  head  of  a  servant 
of  the  High-priest,  named  Malchus ;  swerving  to  one  side, 
the  fellow  received  the  blow  upon  his  right  ear,  which  was 
thus  cut  away.1 

Fierce  feelings  were  beginning  to  surge  in  their  hearts, 
but  Jesus  quelled  the  storm  with  a  word. 

"Suffer  ye  thus  far!"2  He  said,  and  perceiving  that 
Malchus  was  bleeding,  with  His  own  hands,  which  though 
He  was  their  captive  were  not  yet  bound,  He  touched  the 
servant's  ear  and  healed  it. 

Then  turning  toward  Peter,  Jesus  rebuked  him  for  thus 
disturbing  His  Passion  and  degrading  the  dignity  of  His 
estate  to  the  likeness  of  some  criminal,  apprehended  in  an 
act  of  revolt. 

"  Eeturn  thy  sword  to  its  sheath,  for  whosoever  taketh 
the  sword  shall  perish  by  the  sword."3 

Then  as  His  Agony  and  the  cup  of  anguish  rushed  back 
upon  His  mind,  — 

"  What !  shall  I  not  drink  the  Chalice  which  My  Father 
hath  given  Me  to  drink  ?  Thinkest  thou  that  I  cannot 
pray  unto  Him,  and  presently  He  will  send  hither  unto 
Me  more  than  twelve  legions  of  Angels  ?  Yet  how  then 
shall  the  Scriptures  be  fulfilled,  wherein  it  says  that  even 
so  it  must  needs  be  ?" 

Such  abnegation  as  this  confounded  Peter;  neverthe- 
less   he    at    least    understood   that,  in  this  very  hour   of 

that  on  entering  the  garden  Judas  went  immediately  towards  Jesus  to  em- 
brace Him.  Rut  evfleu<s,  as  more  fully  explained  by  the  words  iXftuiv  etW-s 
irpotreXdibv  of  S.  Mark  (\iv.  1.")  wry  likely  may  u.  note  merely  the  nervous 
haste  with  which  Jndas  approached  Ids  Master. 

1  Luke  xxii.  40  ;   Matt.  xxvi.  51  :  John  xviii.  10. 

2'Eare  ?ws  tovtov  (Luke  xxii.  51)  :  "Sinite  usque  hue"  (Vulgate). 
These  few  words  addressed  to  the  disciples  arc  well  explained  by  S.  Augus- 
tine :   "  Permittendi  sunt  hue  usque  progredi." 

3  Matt.  xxvi.  52-54. 


JESUS  IN  THE   GARDEN  OF  OLIVES.  269 

humiliation,  the  Saviour  called  God  His  Father,  and 
that,  instead  of  the  twelve  trembling  Apostles,  He  might 
summon  as  many  legions  of  Angels  to  overwhelm  His 
foes. 

No  longer  hoping  to  fathom  the  Master's  designs,  he 
dropped  back  in  silence. 

Hereupon  Jesus  perceived,  coming  toward  them,1  some 
members  of  the  Sanhedrim  Among  them  were  certain 
Temple-officials,  leading  men  of  the  priesthood,  with  some 
Ancients  of  the  people,  who  had  followed  after  their  satel- 
lites at  a  distance.  Addressing  them  in  a  tone  devoid  of 
anger,  Jesus  protested  against  the  violence  of  which  He  was 
the  Victim. 

"You  are  come  out  against  Me  as  against  a  thief,  to 
seize  Me  with  swords  and  staves.  I  was  every  day  in  the 
midst  of  you,  teaching  in  the  Temple,2  and  you  did  not 
hinder  Me ;  but  lo !  this  is  your  hour,  and  the  powers  of 
darkness." 

Thus  Jesus  declared,  in  the  presence  of  His  enemies, 
that  they  had  been  obliged  to  wait  for  the  hour  marked 
out  by  God  wherein  He  should  be  apprehended. 

"  And  all  this,"  He  said,  "  happeneth,  that  that  which 
was  written  by  the  Prophets  may  be  accomplished." 

Hearing  these  words,  the  disciples  took  to  flight,  and  left 
the  armed  band  to  surround  their  Master  unhindered.  The 
soldiers  with  their  tribune,  together  with  the  mass  of  Jews, 
all  rushed  upon  Him,  in  order  to  see  Him  fast  bound ;  for 
they  still  trembled  before  Him  at  whose  least  word  they 
but  just  now  had  been  dashed  to  earth.3  Forsaken  by  His 
own,  Jesus  was  dragged  and  pushed  along  to  Jerusalem. 
One  young  man  alone 4  clung  close  about  His  footsteps ; 
dwelling  in  Kedron  Valley  doubtless  and  wakened  by  the 

1  The  aorist  Trapayevojiivovs  (Luke  xxii.  52)  shows  that  they  came  up 
just  at  the  moment  Jesus  addressed  them  in  these  words. 

2  'Ei>  t$  lep$  (Luke  xxii.  53),  in  the  Temple-porches,  and  not  in  the 
Sanctuary,  the  i>do$,  reserved  to  the  priests. 

3  Matt.  xxvi.  56  ;  John  xviii.  12. 

4  Mark  xiv.  51,  52.  The  traditions  do  not  agree  as  regards  this  young 
man,  in  whom  some  recognize  S.  James,  others  S.  John  or  S.  Mark  ;  but 
none  adduce  any  proof  sufficient  to  settle  the  question. 


270      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

uproar,  he  had  had  only  time  to  throw  a  light  mantle 
about  him.  His  eagerness  in  following  the  Saviour  gave 
rise  to  suspicions,  and  the  guards  made  some  effort  to 
detain  him,  but  he  left  his  garment  in  their  hands,  and 
with  naked  limbs  fled  from  them  into  the  shadows  of  the 
night 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  TRIAL  OF  JESUS. 

I.    Jesus  before  Annas. 

John  xviii.  13,  14,  19-24  ;  Luke  xxii.  54  ;  Mark  xiv.  53. 

From  Gethsemani,  the  road  leading  Sionwards  crosses 
the  Brook,1  then,  winding  its  way  among  the  tombs  at  the 
base  of  Mount  Moriah,  finally  scales  the  steep  ascent  of 
Ophel  and  conducts  the  traveller  into  the  city  by  one  of 
its  southern  gates.  The  soldiers  followed  this  route  in 
order  to  bring  Jesus  to  the  palace  where  dwelt  the  two 
High-Priests,  Caiphas  and  Annas. 

We  have  explained  elsewhere2  the  part  played  by  the 
latter  personage  at  this  period ;  how,  when  deposed  by 
Valerius  Gratus,  he  nevertheless  managed  to  preserve  an 
actual  preeminence  in  public  affairs,  succeeded  in  keep- 
ing the  sovereign  priesthood  in  his  family,  and  in  the  eyes 
of  his  countrymen  always  remained  the  only  legitimate 
Pontiff.  In  fact  the  Gospel  shows  him  received  with  every 
honor  by  the  Sanhedrin,  the  first  to  be  made  cognizant  of 

1  Sepp  (Das  Leben  Jesu  Cliristi,  b.  vi.  k.  xxviii.).  In  the  Middle 
Ages  it  was  believed  that  upon  a  certain  stone  there  could  he  traced 
the  marks  of  His  knees  and  hands  made  by  Jesus  when  He  fell  in  cross- 
ing Kedron.  This  tradition,  however  touching  it  may  seem,  has  no 
authority.  And  it  is  the  same  with  regard  to  the  palace  of  Annas, 
whose  site  the  Armenian  religious  declare  is  that  of  their  Convent  of  the 
Olive-Tree  ;  if  we  credit  them  this  name  was  taken  from  the  tree  to  which 
Jesus  was  bound  while  in  the  courtyard  of  the  High-Priest's  palace.  All 
that  we  can  possibly  know  is,  that  the  palace  of  the  Sovereign  Pontiffs  rose 
to  the  South  of  the  Hill  of  Sion,  and  not  far  from  the  Supper-Room. 

2  Vol.  i.  p.  104. 


272      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

the  accusation  and  arrest  of  Jesus,  in  contravention  of  the 
rights  of  (alphas,  his  son-in-law  and  the  High-Priest  put 
over  them  hy  Borne.  As,  in  all  probability,  the  two  Pon- 
tiffs occupied  separate  wings  of  the  same  palace,1  there  was 
mulling  to  betray  this  sharp  double-play  on  the  part  of  the 
Jews,  and  indeed  it  only  would  have  been  necessary,  in 
order  to  conduct  Jesus  from  Annas  to  Caiphas,  that  they 
should  lead  Him  across  the  court2  which  lay  between  their 
respective  residences. 

Thus,  then,  the  Saviour  was  brought,  in  the  first  place, 
into  the  presence  of  Annas ; 3  and  he,  in  order  to  give  the 
Council  time  to  assemble,4  questioned  Him  at  some  length 
"  as  to  His  disciples  and  concerning  His  doctrine."  The 
very  order  of  these  questions  indicates  the  spirit  which 
dictated  them.  It  is  easy  to  see  that,  in  the  eyes  of  the 
High-Priest,  the  main  object  in  view  was  not  so  much  to 

1  This  conjecture,  proposed  by  Euthymius  (in  Matth.  xxvi.  58),  has  the 
advantage  of  conciliating  the  Synoptic  Writers'  account  with  S.  John. 
Indeed  it  follows  from  the  last  Gospel  that  Peter's  three  denials  took  place 
in  the  Palace  of  Annas,  while,  according  to  others,  this  event  occurred  in 
Caiphas'  residence.  The  natural  conclusion  is  that  the  two  palaces  were 
in  one,  and  that  the  twenty-fourth  verse  of  S.  John's  eighteenth  chapter  : 
"Annas  sent  Him  bound  to  the  High-Priest  Caiphas,"  means  that  Jesus 
was  made  to  pass  from  the  apartments  of  the  former  of  these  Pontiffs  into 
the  halls  of  Caiphas.  Moreover,  it  appears  very  unlikely  that  they  should 
have  dragged  the  Saviour  from  palace  to  palace,  and  across  the  city  streets, 
when  silence,  was  the  uppermost  consideration,  as  requisite  for  the  success 
of  their  plan. 

2  In  the  Orient,  every  dwelling  of  importance  is  composed  of  moderately 
elevated  structures  enclosing  a  huge  court,  the  ai>\r)  alluded  to  by  the  four 
Evangelists  :  iv  /j,ia(p  rrjs  av\r}s  (Luke  xxii.  55)  ;  'EkclOtito  ££w  iv  rr\  av\rj 
(Matt.  xxvi.  69)  ;  koltu  h  rr\  avXfj  (Mark  xiv.  66).  This  courtyard  is 
usually  flagged  over,  and  communicates  with  the  street  by  a  passage  open- 
ing upon  the  front  of  the  building:  'Ei-r)\0ev  ££w  els  rb  irpoatikiov  (Mark 
xiv.  68).  A  heavy  door  (7rp6s  rjj  Otpa,  John  xviii.  16)  closes  this  entrance- 
way,  and  a  wicket  admits  but  one  person  at  a  time. 

'3  John  xviii.  12-14,  19-24. 

4  Meyer  translates  S.  Mark's  words  ((rvvipxovrai  avroi)  thus  :  "The  San- 
hedrin-members  arrived  at  the  same  time  as  Jesus."  Though  at  first  hold- 
ing an  opposite  opinion,  Winer  takes  this  view  in  the  sixth  and  seventh 
editions  of  his  Grammatik.  We  have  adopted  their  interpretation.  It  is 
true,  in  Classical  Greek  we  do  not  find  the  dative  after  ?pxofj.ai  in  the  sense 
of  "  to  go  towards  one"  7rpos  Tiva  ;  but  the  later  writers  offer  frequent  ex- 
amples of  analogous  constructions.  Hence  it  seems  wiser  to  preserve  the 
translation  given  these  words  by  the  Vulgate;  :  "Convenerunt," — "They 
assembled  at  the  High-Priest's." 


JESUS   BEFORE  ANNAS.  27 3 

give  judgment  touching  a  system  of  teaching,  as  it  was  to 
discover  and  frustrate  a  plot.  He  treated  the  much-talked- 
of  "  Kingdom"  of  Jesus  as  one  of  those  visionary  movements 
which  were  forever  agitating  the  East  at  this  period,  espe- 
cially Judea,  —  and  thus,  by  linking  the  adventurers  par- 
ticipating in  it  under  the  bonds  of  secretly  cherished  hopes, 
had  kept  the  country  continually  involved  in  the  dangers 
of  a  new  uprising  against  Rome.  And  it  was  for  this  rea- 
son they  desired  to  find  some  of  His  accomplices,  that  they 
might  extort  from  their  confessions  a  condemnation  of  the 
Nazarene,  and  so  overwhelm  Him  with  one  well-aimed 
blow. 

It  was  not  meet  that  the  Christ  should  assume  this  char- 
acter of  a  conspirator  before  the  world.  Without  making 
any  answer  as  to  His  disciples,  He  rose  straightway  to  a 
plane  of  thought  of  which  Annas  had  little  conception. 

"  I  have  spoken  publicly,"  He  said,  "  I  have  taught  always 
in  the  synagogues  and  the  Temple,  whither  the  Jews  resort; 
and  I  have  said  nothing  in  private.  Why  question  Me  ? 
Ask  those  who  have  heard  Me  as  to  what  I  have  said  to 
them.     They  know  what  I  have  taught  them." 

By  its  bold  inversions,  its  repetition  of  words,  the  orig- 
inal text  alone  can  portray  the  power  of  these  few  sen- 
tences ;  showing  how  Jesus  withdrew  the  Pontiff's  mind 
from  every  foreign  object,  to  fasten  it  solely  and  singly 
upon  His  divine  Person.  "  It  is  I,  and  I  alone," 1  He  tells 
them,  "  Whom  it  behoves  you  to  know.  My  doctrine  is  — 
Myself.  And  of  Myself  have  I  spoken  to  the  world,  freely, 
without  any  dissimulation.2  Myself,  —  this  everywhere 
and  at  all  times,3  in  the  synagogues,  beneath  the  Temple- 
porches,  everywhere  where  Jews  assemble,  this  has  been 
My  Teaching.  Why  speak  of  secrecy  ?  I  have  never  con- 
cealed anything  I  said.  Why  then  do  you  question  Me  ? 
Do  not  examine  My  disciples,  but  ask  those  who  have 

1  'E>w  .  .  .  f'7d)  .  .  .  ejib.  This  is  the  first  word  of  His  answer  ;  it 
is  repeated  at  the  outset  of  the  second  sentence,  and  is  likewise  the  last 
word  which  Jesus  addressed  to  the  High-Priest. 

2  Uapprjcrlif. 

3  UaPTore. 

VOL.   II.— 18 


274      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

beard  Me.  See,  even  these  men  here,"1  Ee  added,  point- 
ing to  those  who  .surrounded  Him,  —  "  they  know  what  I 
have  said." 

These  last  words  of  Jesus  amounted  to  a  refusal  to  jus- 
tify Himself.  This  the  bystanders  comprehended,  and 
one  of  the  officers  of  Annas'  suite,  standing'  almost  be- 
side the  Saviour,  gave  Him  a  blow,2  saying  at  the  same 
time,  — 

"  Is  that  the  way  you  answer  the  High-Priest  ?  " 

"  If  I  have  spoken  evil,"  Jesus  was  content  to  answer, 
"show  what  evil  I  have  said;  but  if  I  have  spoken  well, 
why  do  you  strike  Me  ? " 

Annas,  unable  to  contend  with  this  calm,  broke  off  the 
examination  at  once  and  despatched  Jesus  bound  to  Cai- 
phas,3  thereby  instructing  him  that  he  delivered  Him  over 
as  a  victim,  not  so  much  that  He  might  be  examined,  but 
only  in  order  to  have  Him  condemned.  A  superfluous 
precaution  indeed,  for  it  was  this  very  Caiphas,  as  Saint 

1  OvTOl. 

2  'Va.Tn.aixa  (John  xviii.  22).  Hard^ai  pafioQ  (Hesychius).  Hard^aL 
arrXfi  rrj  xe^PL  (Suidas).  Here  it  seems  more  natural  to  think  it  was  a 
sharp  slap  than  a  blow  from  their  staves  or  clubs  (Acts  xxiii.  2).  To 
strike  the  accused  over  the  mouth  with  the  Hat  of  the  hand,  with  a  leather 
strap,  or  with  a  sandal,  is  an  indignity  still  of  common  occurrence  in  the 
East. 

8  John  xviii.  24.  Many  scholars  suggest  that  this  cross-examination  is 
only  one  incident  of  the  sitting,  as  reported  by  SS.  Matthew  and  Mark. 
According  to  their  hypothesis  this  twenty-fourth  verse  in  S.  John  ought 
to  be  changed  and  given  a  place  after  verse  13  ;  or  else  it  is  merely  a  cor- 
rection inserted  by  the  Evangelist,  indicating  by  the  words  :  "For  Annas 
had  sent  Jesus  bound  to  Caiphas,"  that  the  whole  scene  winch  he  has  been 
recounting  took  place,  not  before  Annas,  but  before  Caiphas.  Any  such 
supposition  is  very  unlikely,  for:  (1)  S.  John,  whose  style  is  plain  and 
terse,  is  not  accustomed  to  double  after  this  fashion,  in  order  to  give  some 
other  meaning  beside  the  one  which  appears  at  first  sight  ;  (2)  lie  dis- 
tinctly states  the  succession  of  events  in  verses  13,  24,  28  of  chapter  xviii. ; 
(3)  if  he  had  meant  to  give  awiaTeikev  the  sense  of  a  pluperfect,  why  did 
he  not  employ  this  form  ?  Undoubtedly  the  aorist  sometimes  has  the 
same  significance,  but  this  by  exception  only.  In  the  present  case,  where 
&tto(tt{\\w  has  a  pluperfect  form  in  common  use,  where,  furthermore,  it 
was  a  question  of  referring  back  to  a  text  and  thereby  modifying  its  natu- 
ral meaning,  would  not  the  Evangelist  have  had  recourse  to  the  more  ex- 
pressive and  clearer  form  ?  S.  John  Chrysostom  seems  to  have  caught  a 
clearer  idea  of  the  order  of  events  :  "  After  this,  seeing  that  they  had 
nothing  more  to  ask  Him,  they  sent  Him  back  to  Caiphas." 


BEFORE  CAIPHAS  AND   THE  SANHEDRIN.       275 

John  reminds  us,   who  had  exclaimed,  but  a  few  days 
earlier  :  — 

"  Is  it  not  right  that  one  man  should  die  for  the  whole 
people." 2 

II.    Jesus  before  Caiphas  and  the  Sanhedrin. 

Matt.  xxvi.  59-68  ;  Mark  xiv.  55-65. 

Jesus  was  brought  away  and  introduced  into  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Sanhedrin,  over  whose  deliberations  it  would 
seem  that  Caiphas  was  presiding  during  this  night-session. 
Eightfully  this  function  belonged  to  Rabban  Gamaliel,  who 
had  held  the  presidency  since  the  death  of  his  father  Si- 
mon ; 2  and  without  doubt  he  had  been  kept  away  design- 
edly. A  man  of  broader  mind  and  sincerely  attached  to 
the  doctrine  of  Hillel,  his  ancestor,  like  him  he  had  broken 
clean  away  from  the  narrow  and  austere  formalism  of 
Shammai  and  the  Scribes,  while  later  on  we  even  find 
him  pleading  the  cause  of  the  Christians.3  Such  a  man 
was  not  likely  to  be  invited  to  the  condemnation  of  Jesus. 
Accordingly  the  High-Priest  assumed  the  direction  of  the 
trial  himself.  And,  further  than  this,  it  was  no  unusual 
thing  for  the  pontiffs  to  reserve  this  right  to  themselves, 
especially  in  any  cases  where  the  worship  of  Jehovah  was 
in  question.4 

The  gathering  before  which  Jesus  appeared  was  the  High 
Court  of  Justice  in  Judea.  In  full  conclave  it  numbered 
seventy-one  members,5  but  the  presence  of  twenty-three 
was  sufficient  to  constitute  a  tribunal  and  give  authority 
to  its  decrees.  The  Nasi,  or  "  Patriarch,"  of  the  Sanhedrin, 
seated  upon  a  platform,  presided  over  their  deliberations  ; 
around  him,  upon  cushions  arranged  in  a  semi-circle  along 

1  John  xviii.  14.  S.  John  only  relates  the  account  of  His  examination 
before  Caiphas,  because  in  his  own  eyes  this  first  act  decided  all  that 
followed. 

2  See  History  of  the  Jews,  by  Graetz  and  Jost. 
8  Acts  v.  34-39. 

*  Lightfoot,  Horce  Hebraic^,  in  Matt.  xxvi.  3. 
5  See  vol.  i.  p.  5. 


27(3       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

the  ground,  were  seated  the  other  judges.  The  Nasi  had, 
at  his  right  hand,  a  Vice-President 1  who  directed  the  de- 
bates, and  close  at  hand  the  Sages,2  who  were  the  usual 
legal  Councillors  of  the  Court.  At  either  extremity  of  this 
space  were  posted  two  secretaries,  occupied  in  recording  in 
order,  one  everything  charged  against  the  accused  party, 
the  other  anything  favorable  to  his  cause.  Besides  these 
there  were  various  subaltern  officials  who  surrounded  the 
accused,  armed  with  ropes  and  thongs  with  which  to  bind 
or  beat  him  at  the  first  order  from  the  court.  Such  was 
the  general  aspect  of  the  tribunal  before  which  Jesus  was 
now  conducted. 

From  the  beginning  it  was  easy  to  see  just  how  far  the 
prejudice  entertained  by  the  judges  against  their  prisoner 
was  likely  to  carry  them.  There  is  nothing  to  indicate 
that  they  in  any  way  respected  the  Eules  of  the  Sanhe- 
drin,  which  commanded  that  for  capital  offences  every- 
thing in  favor  of  the  accused  3  must  be  exhibited  first.  No 
counsel,  not  a  single  witness  for  the  defence,  was  engaged 
in  this  case.4  Then,  too,  the  accusation  was  of  a  different 
tenor  this  time  ;  it  was  no  longer  a  question  of  some  secret 
doctrine,  but  of  His  public  instructions  and  His  blasphemies 
against  religion. 

As  if  in  derision  of  the  Lord's  request  that  "  they  should 
interrogate  His  hearers,"  5  the  Chief  of  the  Sanhedrin  re- 
plied by  producing  various  suborned  witnesses,  who  as- 
serted that  they  had  heard  Him  uttering  scandalous 
sayings,6 — these  were  some  of  His  expressions,  either 
misunderstood  or  distorted,  of  which  we  find  numerous 
examples  in  the  Gospels. 

The  regular  formalities  were  gone  through  with  for  the 

1  This  Vice-President  was  called  the  "  Sagan,"  or  "  Father  of  the  House 
of  Judgment."  Some  scholars  hold  that  Annas  filled  these  functions  at 
the  trial,  and  hence  had  examined  Jesus  heforehand,  in  order  to  inform 
himself  concerning  the  matter. 

2  Friedlieh,  Jrchaologie  der  Lcidensgcschichte,  §  26. 

3  Sanhedrin,  4. 

*  Ibid.  40,  1,  and  32,  1. 
6  John  xviii.  21. 

•  Matt.  xxvi.  59-62. 


BEFORE   CAIPHAS  AND   THE  SANHEDR1N.      277 

benefit  of  these  informers,  the  oath  was  proffered  them,  and 
they  listened  to  the  solemn  voice  of  the  Nasi :  — 

"  Know  ye,  that  the  blood  of  the  innocent  man  and 
of  his  posterity  shall  return  upon  your  heads  now  and 
forevermore."  1 

Nevertheless,  determined  as  they  were  to  utter  their 
calumnies,  they  were  unable  to  concert  upon  all  points ; 
and  before  this  tribunal,  where  they  now  appeared  one 
after  the  other,  their  depositions  did  not  agree.  Thus 
Jesus  had  simply  to  listen  in  silence,  and  behold  the  arti- 
fices of  His  adversaries  annul  themselves.2 

But  in  the  end  two  men  testified  that  they  had  heard 
Jesus  say,  "  I  am  able  to  destroy  the  Temple  of  God,  and 
in  three  days  rebuild  it."  This  testimony  Saint  Mark 
reports  under  another  form  : 3  — 

"  We  have  heard  him  say,  '  I  will  destroy  this  Temple, 
the  handiwork  of  man,  and  in  three  days  1  will  build 
another,  which  shall  not  be  the  handiwork  of  man.'  " 

Even  upon  this  point  they  could  not  manage  to  agree. 

The  prosecution  was  falling  to  the  ground  amid  all  this 
contradictory  evidence ;  moreover,  the  falsity  of  the  whole 
thing  was  manifest,  for  it  was  in  public  and  in  the  open 
courts  of  the  Temple  that  Jesus  had  said  :  "  Overthrow 
this  Holy  of  Holies," 4  as  by  your  faithlessness  and  your 
crimes  you  are  doing,  and  "  in  three  days  I  will  reerect 
it."  And  thereby,  we  must  bear  in  mind,  He  referred  to 
His  Body,  destined  to  become  the  Holy  of  Holies  of  a 
New  Covenant  to  mankind.5 

1  Friedlieb,  Arclidologie  dcr  LcidcnsgescMchte,  §  26,  S.  88. 

12  ('alphas  was  obliged  to  relinquish  many  of  the  chief  points  for  the 
prosecution  ;  particularly  the  contempt  which  Jesus  had  shown  for  the 
Pharisaic  Ordinances,  since  this  would  have  had  little  weight  with 
the  Sadducean  division  of  the  Sanhedrin  (Acts  xxiii.  6,   7). 

3  Mark  xiv.  58,  59. 

4  T6i/  vabv  tovtov  (John  ii.  19). 

5  This  saying  of  Jesus  had  greatly  moved  the  Jews  ;  and  yet,  indeed, 
among  those  events  which  were  to  signalize  the  Messiah's  coming  none  is 
oftener  referred  to  in  their  traditions  than  the  New  Temple,  more  glorious 
than  that  of  ancient  days,  which  was  to  be  erected  by  a  Son  of  David  : 
"  I  will  raise  up  ail  Heir  unto  thee  Who  shall  proceed  from  thee,  and  I 
will  strengthen  His  Kingdom.  He  it  is  Who  shall  build  a  House  unto 
My  Name,  and  I  will  forevermore  establish  the  throne  of  His  Kingdom.     I 


278      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Mighty  in  the  testimony  which  the  simple  truth  had 
tendered  to  His  cause  Jesus  stood  there,  silent  still,  and 
let  the  confusion  have  free  sway  about  Him.1  Caaphas 
realized  how  eloquently  this  silence  spoke  for  the  defence. 
Suddenly  he  stepped  down  from  the  judicial  dais  and  ad- 
vanced into  the  centre  of  the  hall,  until  he  was  face  to  face 
with  the  Prisoner. 

"You  answer  nothing!"  he  said  sharply.  "What  is  all 
this  they  are  testifying  against  you  ?  "  2 

Still  Jesus  was  silent. 

The  disconcerted  Pontiff  perceived  now  that  he  must 
bring  matters  to  an  issue.  Accordingly,  thrusting  aside 
technical  shifts  and  captious  cpaestioning,  he  administered 
a  solemn  oath  to  Jesus  which,  according  to  the  Law, 
obliged  Him  to  make  answer.3 

"  1  adjure  you,  in  the  Name  of  the  living  God,  tell  us  if 
you  are  the  Son  of  God."  4 

Caiphas's  language  really  anticipated  his  thought;  he 
did  not  say :  "  Tell  us  if  you  pretend  to  be  really  the  Son 
of  God;"  his  words  were  "  whether  you  are  the  Christ, 
the  Son  of  the  Blessed  God."  6 

"  I  am  He,"  6  replied  Jesus,  and,  with  this  declaration,  He 

will  be  His  Father,  and  He  shall  be  My  Son  "  (2  Kings  vii.  12-14).  This 
promise,  once  made  to  the  Great  King,  is  applied  to  the  Messiah  by 
the  Targums  and  the  Babbinical  Commentaries  (Sepp,  Lcben  Jem,  b.  vi. 
k.  xxx.) 

1  Matt.  xxvi.  63  ;  Mark  xiv.  61. 

2  Mark  xiv.  60.  In  the  Greek  Text  this  question  generally  forms  two 
distinct  interrogations  :  "Do  you  answer  nothing  1  Then  do  you  not  see 
what  evidence  they  are  witnessing  against  you?"  Thus  the  thought  is 
given  a  vivider  and  more  urgent  tone.  Still  there  is  nothing  to  prevent 
our  connecting  these  two  queries  as  it  stands  in  the  Vulgate  :  "  Nihil 
respondes  ad  ea  quae  isti  adversum  te  testificantur  ?"  for  airoKplveadai  tl 
means  "  to  respond  to  anything,"  and  t'i  is  frequently  used  for  6rt  in  the 
New  Testament  (Winer,  Grammatik,  par.  25,  1). 

3  Lev.  v.  1.     Keil,  Archdologie  der  Leidcnsgcschichte,  II.,  S.  256. 

4  Matt.  xxvi.  63. 

5 '0  vlbs  tov  Ev\oyr]Tov  (Mark  xiv.  61)  ^371  :  The  "  Sanctus  Bene- 
dlctus  "  of  the  Rabbis. 

6  Instead  of  eyw  el/u,  given  by  S.  Mark,  in  S.  Matthew  we  find  <r!>  efrras, 
"Thou  hast  said  it."  This  is,  as  it  were,  an  appeal  to  their  innermost 
presentiments,  to  their  secret  convictions,  to  the  very  language  of  (.'alphas 
(John  xi.  49,  etc.). 


BEFORE   CAIPHAS  AND  THE  SANHEDRIN.      279 

spoke  some  few  words  following  upon  the  thought,  of 
which  the  Evangelist  has  preserved  only  this  single  note- 
worthy utterance  :  — 

"  Moreover,  I  say  unto  you,  one  day  you  shall  see  the 
Son  of  Man  seated  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  of 
God,  and  coming  on  the  clouds  of  Heaven." 

The  Scribes  could  not  fail  to  recognize  how,  in  these 
words,  there  was  a  twofold  reference  to  the  Prophecies 
of  Scripture  ;  on  one  hand,  it  recalled  the  Psalm  1  which 
foretold  the  Divinity  of  the  Christ :  "  The  Lord  hath  said 
to  My  Lord :  '  Sit  Thou  at  My  right  hand  ;'  "  and  on  the 
other,  it  contained  an  allusion  to  Daniel's  Vision,2  where 
the  Messiah  "  advanceth  upon  the  clouds  of  Heaven  unto 
the  Ancient  of  Days."  And  therefore  Jesus  thereby  pro- 
claimed that  He  was  the  Christ  for  whom  Israel  had  so 
long  been  waiting ;  that  His  place  was  on  the  right  hand 
of  God,  and  His  Mission  to  come  at  the  end  of  time  to 
judge  the  world. 

But  the  Sanhedrin-Council  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  this  tes- 
timony, and  the  High-Priest's  sole  answer  was  to  rend  his 
garments.3 

"  What  further  need  have  we  of  witnesses  ? "  he  cried 
aloud.  "  You  have  heard  the  blasphemy.  How  seems  this 
matter  unto  you  ? " 

"  He  is  worthy  of  death  !"  they  all  made  answer. 

Forthwith  commenced  a  scene  of  unspeakable  outrages. 

1  Ps.  cix.  l. 

2  Dan.  vii.  13. 

3  To  rend  their  garments  lias  been  in  all  times  a  sign  of  mourning  among 
Orientals  ;  no  usage  was  commoner  with  the  Hebrew  people.  But  this  ac- 
tion, the  offspring  of  natural  feeling  at  first,  came  afterwards,  like  every- 
thing else,  to  be  reduced  to  puerile  rules.  The  judge,  upon  hearing  a  blas- 
phemy, must  tear  his  robes,  while  his  associates  manifested  their  sympathy 
for  his  indignation  by  springing  up  from  their  seats.  This  rent,  which 
was  made  in  front,  just  below  the  neck  and  a  hand's-breath  in  length, 
couhi  not  be  resewn  ;  this  to  declare  visibly  that  a  fault  against  the  Su- 
preme Majesty  merited  no  pardon.  According  to  Leviticus  (xxi.  10),  the 
High-Priest  must  not  tear  his  vestments  ;  but  this  prohibition,  says  the 
Targum  of  Jonathas,  only  had  reference  to  the  ceremonies  of  mourning 
and  the  religious  functions  when  the  Pontiff  wore  the  sacerdotal  orna- 
ments ;  under  any  other  circumstances,  in  a  trial  like  this,  for  instance, 
the.  High-Priest  tore  his  garment  from  tin-  bottom  to  the  top,  while  those 
who  were  only  priests  tore  them  from  top  to  bottom  (Horayoth,  3). 


280      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

It  seems,  following  Saint  Mark's  account,1  that  even  here, 
in  the  centre  of  the  National  Council,  some  of  these  high 
functionaries,  as  if  to  give  a  signal  for  the  indignities  which 
ensued,  were  the  first  to  spit  full  in  the  face  of  Jesus; 
then  when  they  had  so  covered  His  face  they  struck  Kim 
with  the  flat  of  their  hands,  while  others,2  says  Saint 
Matthew,  smote  Jesus,  and  at  every  blow  shouted, — 

"  Christ,  prophecy  !  who  struck  you  ?" 

"When  their  rage  and  fury  had  spent  itself  the  Sanhed- 
rin-Councillors  handed  Jesus  over  to  their  servants  and 
the  understrappers  of  the  court.  This  throng  received 
Him  with  a  shower  of  blows  from  their  sticks,  according 
to  the  reading  of  the  sacred  text ;  while  in  another  place 
we  are  told  that  they  drove  Him  before  them,  maltreating 
Him  in  every  manner.3 

III.     Peter's  Denial. 

John  xviii.   12-18,  25-27  ;   Luke  xxii.   54-62 ;   Matt.  xxvi.  58,  69-75  ; 
Mark  xiv.  54,  66-72. 

During  this  same  night  was  accomplished  what  was 
foretold  them  by  the  Lord:  while  He  stood  for  His  trial 
before  Annas  and  Caiphas,  Peter,  the  Chief  of  the  Apos- 
tles, denied  Him  thrice. 

The  Evangelists  note  with  considerable  care  the  moment 
of  these  acts  of  infidelity ; 4  but  they  report  the  language 

1  Mark  xiv.  65. 

2  'EKo\d<pi<rai>  clvtov,  ol  di  ipawiffau>  (Matt,  xxvi.  67).  Evidently  these 
two  terms  are  not  synonymous.  But  since  the  first  has  only  the  one  mean- 
ing, "to  slap,"  the  second,  which  signifies  to  strike  either  with  the  hand 
or  with  a  stick,  ought  to  he  taken  in  tie1  latter  sense. 

'■''  .Mark  xiv.  65.  The  MSS.  of  the  Vatican.  Sinai,  Ephraem,  and  Alex- 
andria contain  the  reading  ZXafiov.     The  other  form,  tfiaWov,  given  by  the 

II lived  Text,  is  found   in  the  Codex  Wolfii  (manuscript  of  the  ninth 

century). 

4  The  first  t<»>k  place  at  the  momenl  when  the  portress,  while  letting 
Peter  into  the  courtyard,  addressed  him  with  the  words:  ' ELaifyaye  rbv 
lttrpov  ■  X^yet  ovu  ij  Ovpwpbs  .  .  .  kt\  (John  x\  iii.  16,  17).  OiV  in  the  nar- 
rative simply  marks  the  continuation  with  what  has  jusl  been  said  (Win  >r, 
Orammatik,  par.  53,  8,  a).  The  second  occurred  at  the  first  crow  of  the  cock 
(Mark  xiv.  68),  about  three  o'clock  iu  the  morning  (Pliny,  Historicc  Naty* 


PETER'S  DENIAL.  281 

and  the  circumstances  so  differently  that  it  is  quite  impos- 
sible to  regard  them  as  the  same  words  uttered  on  the 
same  occasions.  Instead  of  limiting  the  recusancy  of  the 
Apostle  to  three  disavowals  framed  by  his  lips,  we  believe 
it  more  likely  that  three  distinct  times  during  this  night 
Peter  was  recognized  by  various  persons,  and  that  on  these 
three  occasions  he  proved  false  to  his  Master,  each  time 
reiterating  his  denial  under  different  forms  and  before 
more  than  one  witness.1  No  one  thing  goes  so  far  toward 
proving  the  independence  of  each  single  Evangelist  re- 
garding the  others  as  the  freedom  which  they  display  in 
making  their  selections  from  the  words  and  actions  which 
still  remained  fresh  in  their  memories,  and  the  little  pains 
they  are  at  in  order  to  make  their  narratives  agree  upon 
such  points  as  this.  When  we  compare  the  evidence,  with 
this  idea  in  mind,  and  without  confusing  their  testimony, 
we  find  that  each  of  them  furnishes  us  with  some  new 
features  in  these  stories,  wherein  the  abundance  of  details, 
the  variety  and  stirring  movements  of  the  characters  serve 
to  set  Peter's  falsehoods  and  downfall  in  stronger  relief. 
To  clearly  understand  the  order  of  the  incidents  it  behoves 
us  to  return  to  the  first  hours  succeeding  the  scene  in  the 
garden. 

Two  of  the  Apostles,  after  recovering  from  their  first 
terror,  retraced  their  steps  in  order  to  follow  the  road 
taken  by  the  Saviour.  Peter,  who  was  one  of  them,  lin- 
gered at  a  distance,  but  the  other  disciple2  drew  nearer 

ralis,  x.  24  ;  Censorinus,  Dc  Die  natali,  xxiv.  ;  Macrobius,  SaturnaL,  lib. 
i.  3)  ;  the  third  one  hour  later  (Luke  xxii.  59  ;  Wieseler,  Chronologisclic 
Synapse,  S.  406  ;  Friedlieb,  Arehaologie,  par.  24). 

1  "Quaeres  quoties  Petrus  negavit  Christum?  Eespondet  Dionysius 
Carthusianus  sexies.  Idem  videtur  colligi  ex  Augustino  {Dc  Consensu 
Evangelistarum,  iii.  9).  Addit  Cajetanus  Petrum  septies  negasse  Chris- 
tum, scilicet,  ter  interpellatum  a  feminis,  et  quater  aviris"  (Cornelius  a 
Lapide,  in  Mat.,  xxvi.  70). 

."2  '0  ct'XXos  fj.a07]rris  (John  xviii.  15).  It  is  the  common  opinion  of  Tra- 
dition that  "  this  other  disciple  "  is  S.  John.  Here,  as  all  through  his  Gos- 
pel, he  avoids  mentioning  his  own  name,  and  makes  use  of  vague  terms  in 
speaking  of  himself:  "  The  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved  ;  he  who  was  rest- 
ing upon  His  bosom  ..."  (John  xix.  26  ;  xx.  2  ;  xxi.  7,  20).  Many  have 
tried  in  vain  to  explain  how  he  came  io  be  acquainted  with  the  Pontiff's 
people.      In  this  circumstance  Ewald  sees  a  confirmation  of  his  theory 


282       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

the  troop  of  armed  men ;  it  was  John,  henceforth  stead- 
fastly exposing  himself  to  every  peril  at  the  Master's  side, 
and  never  quitting  His  sight.  As  he  was  known  at  the 
pontifical  palace  he  managed  to  enter  there  with  Jesus, 
not  noticing  that  his  companion  no  lunger  followed  him.1 
The  latter,  fearing  to  appear  inside  the  courtyard,  hung 
back  in  the  darkness  without.  Perceiving  his  absence 
John  went  out,  spoke  a  word  to  the  servant-maid  who 
tended  the  wicket,  and  so  introduced  him  into  the  house. 

Casting  a  curious  glance  at  the  stranger,  the  portress 
asked  sharply :  "  Are  n't  you  too  one  of  this  man's 
disciples  ? " 

"  No,  I  am  not ! "  replied  Peter,  and  hurried  quickly  out 
of  her  way. 

At  this  season  of  the  year  the  night-time  in  Judea  is  all 
the  cooler  in  proportion  to  the  extreme  heats  of  the  day. 
To  protect  themselves  from  the  cold  the  guards  and  men- 
servants  had  lighted  in  the  lower  court2  a  small  pile  of 
such  thorny  brushwood  as  grows  in  abundance  about  Jeru- 
salem.3 Seated  in  this  little  circle  Peter  was  warming  his 
trembling  hands,  "  awaiting  the  end,"  when  for  the  second 
time  he  encountered  the  keen  glance  of  the  portress. 

She  was  scrutinizing  him  fixedly  by  the  aid  of  the 
firelight. 

"Certainly,"  she  said,  "you  were  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth." 

Then  before  all  present  Peter  denied  Him,  saying,  ;'  I 
do  not  know  what  you  mean  to  assert."  4 

But  she  persisted  that  she  was  right,  telling  the  others  :  — 

"  Certainly,  I  know  he  was  with  him." 

"  Woman,"  Peter  retorted  again,  "  I  do  not  even  know 
Him."  5 


that  the  two  families  of  Jesus  and  of  John  were  of  the  levitical  race.  The 
hypothesis  proposed  by  Nonnus —  that  the  Apostle  frequented  the  palace 
owing  to  his  fisherman's  trade  —  has  as  little  foundation  as  the  preceding. 

i  John  xviii.  16,  17. 

a  Luke  xxii.  55.  Kdrw  (Mark  xiv.  G6),  below;  the  halls  which  sur- 
round the  courtyard  wire  raised  to  a  little  higher  level. 

:!  Sepp,  Leben  Jesu,  b.  vi.  k.  xxxiii. 

4  Matt.  xxvi.  58,  69,  70  ;  Luke  xxii.  56  ;  Mark  xiv.  67. 

5  Luke  xxii.  56,  57. 


PETER'S  DENIAL.  283 

Then  in  great  trouble  of  mind  he  walked  away  from  the 
group  of  curious  bystanders;  and  at  that  moment  was 
heard  the  first  crow  of  the  cock.1 

As  he  neared  the  great  door  he  met  with  another  maid- 
servant, to  whom  it  would  seem  the  portress  had  confided 
her  suspicions.  She  too  said  to  the  waiting  men  and  the 
rest  standing  about,  — 

"  This  man  was  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth." 

And  Peter  denied  it  with  an  oath.2 

The  other  maid  in  charge  of  the  door  had  persisted  in 
following  after  him,  and  at  this  she  spoke  up  again,3  — 

"  Surely,"  she  said,  "  this  is  one  of  them." 

Again  he  denied  it. 

One  of  the  spectators  in  this  scene  addressed  the  Apos- 
tle with  the  query :  "  What !  are  you  one  of  that  set 
yonder  ? " 

"  Man,"  retorted  Peter,  "  I  am  not  one  of  them."4 

John  had  heard  the  first  denial  at  the  entrance-way  of 
the  palace,  but  altogether  bent  thereafter  upon  watching 
the  trial  of  Jesus  he  was  not  a  witness  to  the  scenes  just 
enacted,  and  related  by  the  Synoptic  Writers  only.  When 
he  glanced  out  into  the  court  the  servants  were  stirring  up 
the  fire  and  warming  themselves,  for  the   night  air  was 

1  Mark  xiv.  68.  A  prohibition,  religiously  observed,  forbade  the  people 
to  raise  poultry  within  the  city  limits,  for  fear,  as  we  are  informed  by  a 
marginal  note  in  the  Baba-Kamma  (vii.  7),  that  these  fowls,  accustomed  to 
look  for  food  in  tin;  muck-heaps,  might  pollute  the  sacred  objects.  Hence 
some  have  surmised  that  the  Gospel  account  refers  simply  to  the  cries  of 
the  watchmen  called  at  that  time  "  the  Cock-crow."  Is  it  not  quite  as 
likely  that  Peter  could  catch  the  sound  of  the  cocks  crowing  in  the  Valley 
of  Siloe  ?  Their  piercing  note  carries  to  a  great  distance,  for  in  Constan- 
tinople it  is  heard  coming  across  from  the  shores  of  Asia,  at  Messina 
the  sound  reaches  from  the  banks  of  Calabria,  and  from  the  gardens  of 
Siloe  it  can  easily  find  its  way  to  the  heights  of  Sion.  In  the  Middle 
Ages  a  church  was  pointed  out  in  Kedron  Valley  still  called  "  Cock-Crow  " 
(Tobler,  Siloa,  301). 

2  Matt,  xx vi.  71,  72. 

3  HdiW  (Mark  xiv.  09)  should  be  referred  to  ifp^aro,  "she  recommenced." 
If  this  adverb  applied  to  ldov<ra  avrov  the  importance  of  the  thought  ex- 
pressed by  it  would  have  placed  it  at  the  head  of  the  sentence  before 
idodaa..  Teschendorf,  relying  upon  the  testimony  of  the  Sinaitic  and  Alex- 
andrian MSS.,  puts  it  after  TJi^aro,  which  does  away  with  all  difficulty. 

*  Luke  xxii.  58. 


284      THE  PASSlO.X  AXD  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

growing  exceeding  chill.  Peter,  stationed  near  them,  still 
stood  there  warming  himself.1  Driven  back  from  the  door 
by  his  harassing  questioners,  he  had  returned  to  his  former 
standing-place.  John  overheard  the  voice  of  some  one 
saying  to  him  :  — 

"  You  too  are  one  of  his  disciples;"  whereat  he  replied  :  — 

"  No,  I  am  not." 

Tired  at  last  of  questioning  him  they  left  him  unmo- 
lested for  nearly  an  hour,2  but  at  length,  after  he  had  been 
drawn  into  a  moment's  conversation  with  his  neighbors, 
they  exclaimed  :  — 

"  Certainly  you  are  one  of  his  disciples,  for  your  accent 
betrays  you.3     You  are  a  Galilean." 

One  of  the  High-Priest's  servants,  a  kinsman  of  Mal- 
chus  whose  ear  Peter  had  cut  off,  added  :  — 

"  Did  I  not  see  you  in  the  garden  with  him  ?" 

Once  more  Peter's  courage  failed  him. 

"  I  do  not  know  what  you  are  talking  about,"  he  cried ; 
"  I  do  not  know  this  Man  of  Whom  you  speak."  And  his 
fear  betrayed  itself  in  a  stream  of  curses  and  oaths.  He 
was  still  fiercely  protesting  when  the  cock  crew  for  the 
second  time.4 

It  was  then  that  Jesus  turned  and  looked  at  him. 


1  John  xviii.  18,  25. 

2  Luke  xxii.  59. 

8  Matt.  xxvi.  73  ;  Mark  xiv.  70  ;  John  xviii.  20.  The  Galilean  dialect 
was  noted  for  its  very  rough  pronunciation  of  the  gutturals,  for  generally 
faulty  construction,  and  for  certain  peculiar  local  idioms.  From  this,  in 
their  intercourse  with  the  Jews,  arose  some  strange  mistakes,  much  confu- 
sion in  ideas,  and  other  ridiculous  misapprehensions.  The  Rabbinical  lit- 
erature has  preserved  a  record  of  the  witticisms  which  found  their  excuse 
in  the  vicious  pronunciation  of  the  Galileans.  Now  they  tell  of  a  woman 
wishing  to  say  to  her  companion  :  "  My  friend,  I  want  to  have  you  taste 
the  milk  "  (Schelubthci  deochihch  chalobo),  but  pronouncing  it,  Scheluhti 
tochilech  /"In),  "The  lion  shall  devour  you."  Or  again,  when  a  Galilean 
asks  some  Jews  near  him  :  Amur  leman  ?  "Who  has  an  amar?"  and  the 
latter  retort:  "Poor  clown  from  Galilee,  what  dost  thou  ask  for?  dost 
want  an  ass  for  thy  journey,  ibn  ;  wine  for  thy  drink,  IpH  ;  linen  fur  thy 
garments,  IDJ^J  or  a  lamb  for  a  sacrifice,  "ICTK?"  So  too  In  the  syna- 
gogues they  never  allowed  a  Galilean  to  read  the  Holy  Books  (Talmud  of 
Babylon,  Eroubin,  53,  Gloss.). 

4  Matt.  xxvi.  H  ;  Mark  xiv.  72  :  Luke  xxii.  60. 


SECOND  SITTING   OF  THE  SANHEDRIN.        285 

This  was  more  than  Peter  could  bear.  Suddenly  he 
remembered  how  the  Master  had  said  to  him :  — 
"  Before  cock-crow  thou  shalt  have  deuied  Me  thrice." 
Overwhelmed  with  despair  and  beside  himself,  he  had 
no  further  thought  of  the  danger  which  threatened  his 
steps.  At  his  great  outburst  of  grief  the  crowd  fell  back 
in  surprise,1  leaving  him  a  free  passage.  Rushing  by  them 
all  he  found  his  way  out  of  the  palace,  and,  thinking 2 
upon  the  words  of  Jesus,  he  wept  bitterly. 

IV.    The  Second  Sitting  of  the  Sanhedrin. 

Luke  xxii.  63-71,  xxiii.  1  ;  Matt,  xxvii.  1,  2  ;  Mark  xv.  1  ;  John  xviii.  28. 

Handed  over  to  the  Sanhedrin-guards,  Jesus  had  to  en- 
dure still  greater  indignities.  Saint  Luke,  who  omits  the 
account  of  that  night-session  before  Caiphas,  first  depicts 
the  Saviour  in  the  centre  of  this  crowd  of  lackeys  and 
grooms,3  insulted,  beaten,  and  buffeted.4  "  They  blind- 
folded His  eyes,"  he  says,  "  and  smiting  Him  on  the  face 
challenged  Him  to  prophecy,  and  they  uttered  many  other 
taunts  and  insults  against  Him." 

Jesus  remained  for  more  than  an  hour  5  at  the  mercy  of 
their  pitiless  hands,  for  not  until  morning  and  broad  day- 
light6 did  the  members  of  the  Sanhedrin  summon  Him 
again  before  them.7 

1  This  hypothesis  seems  to  us  requisite  in  order  to  explain  how  the 
Apostle,  till  now  surrounded  by  a  suspicious  crowd,  could  have  passed 
unhindered  from  the  palace. 

2  Matt.  xxvi.  75.  The  oldest  Versions,  the  Syriac,  the  Italic,  the  Vul- 
gate, the  Sabidic,  the  Gothic,  the  Armenian,  appear  to  have  adopted  the 
reading  in  Beza's  Codex  :  "Up^aro  k\o.Uip.  Indeed  it  is  hard  to  believe 
that  they  could  have  translated  the  text  given  us  to-day  by  the  most  im- 
portant MSS.  :  iinpa\uv  2K\aui>,  by  "  he  began  to  weep."  The  most  natu- 
ral interpretation  of  these  words  seems  to  be  this  :  "  Reflecting  upon  that 
saying  of  Jesus,  he  wept." 

3  Luke  xxii.  63-65. 

4  Mpovres,  literally,  "flaying  ;  "  by  extension,  "  showering  blows  upon 
Him." 

5  From  the  second  cock-crow  (four  in  the  morning)  to  sunrise,  which 
takes  place  about  six  o'clock  during  the  first  fortnight  of  April. 

6'fis  iyevero  r}p.ipa  (Luke  xxii.  66). 

7  This  second  sitting  of  the  Sanhedrin  was  held,  like  the  first,  in  the 
pontifical  palace,  for  they  started  from  Caiphas'  residence  when   bringing 


2  86      1  HE  PA SSIO N  A  N 1)  R E S I  R /,'  /.  c ' Tl ON  OF  JES US. 

Ever  since  early  dawn  they  bad  been  closeted,  advising 
as  t"  the  best  means  of  executing-  the  sentence  which  they 
had  just  pronounced  against  Jesus.  The  first  requisite 
was  to  obtain  the  approval  of  the  Procurator,  Pontius 
Pilate;  for  since  the  exile  of  Archelaus  and  the  final  subju- 
gation of  Judea  the  Sanhedrin  had  no  longer  any  power  to 
punish  its  prisoners  with  death.  Rome,  tolerant  though 
she  always  was  toward  the  religion  of  the  vanquished, 
nevertheless  reserved  to  herself  the  administration  of  jus- 
tice, and  charged  the  proconsuls  to  study  local  customs,  in 
order  to  make  them,  if  possible,  accord  with  the  Eoman 
Code,  and  so  form  a  body  of  laws  peculiar  to  each  region. 
It  is  true  the  general  control  of  affairs  was  left  to  the  ordi- 
nary judges  of  the  province;  but  matters  of  appeal,  any 
important  suits,  and  especially  all  cases  of  capital  offence, 
remained  subject  to  the  Governor.1  So,  however  jealous 
of  their  authority  these  Councillors  might  be,  they  were 
obliged  to  bend  beneath  the  yoke  which  at  present  held 
the  world  in  check ;  yet  in  this  instance  they  resigned 
themselves  to  necessity  more  willingly,  because  the  concur- 
rence of  Pontius  Pilate,  by  relieving  them  of  all  responsi- 
bility, would  prevent  any  possible  conflict  with  the  people. 
For  suppose  that  in  a  throng  like  the  one  which,  five  days 
ago,  had  cheered  the  Saviour's  entry,  —  suppose  that  some 
one  of  the  sick  folk,  cured  by  His  word,  should  utter  his 
indignation  at  the  condition  to  which  their  hatred  had  re- 
duced Him ;  would  not  this  be  enough  to  excite  an  upris- 
ing, in  the  hope  of  rescuing  Jesus  ?  This  was  quite  reason 
enough  for  their  eagerness  to  have  Him  put  into  the  safe 

Jesus  before  the  Pretorium  (John  xviii.  28).  The  ordinary  place  for  their 
assemblies  was  the  basilica  erected  by  Simon  Ben-Shetach  near  the  Israel- 
ites' Porches,  and  known  by  the.  name  of  Gazith  (Hall  of  hewn  or  square 
Stones).  But  the  Jewish  traditions  inform  us  that,  forty  years  before  the 
destruction  of  the  Temple,  the  Sanhedrin,  bereft  of  their  powers  of  sen- 
tencing prisoners  to  death,  abandoned  Gfazith  and  held  their  sittings  in  the 
Gentiles'  Porches,  and  still  later  on  in  the  lower  town  (Talmud  of  Baby- 
lon, Ruschhaschana,  31,  1  ;  Talmud  of  Jerusalem,  Yoma,  13,  3  ;  Sanhedrin, 
24,  2).  So  three  years  before  the  Saviour's  Passion  the  Great  Council  had 
ceased  to  have  any  fixed  place  for  their  meetings. 

1  Pauly,  Real  Encyclopadie  der  Altcrthumswissenschaft :  Proconsul, 
Pkovincia. 


SECOND  SITTING   OF   THE  SANHEDRIN.  287 

keeping  of  Roman  power,  with  the  further  hope  of  in- 
ducing- the  Governor  to  ratify  their  condemnation. 

Their  negotiations  were  destined  to  meet  with  consider- 
able difficulties,  for  Pilate,  however  ready  for  bloodshed  in 
moments  of  confusion  and  riot,  in  matters  of  public  busi- 
ness cherished  all  a  Eoman's  reverence  for  juridical  forms. 
Now  everything  of  the  sort  had  been  set  at  naught  in  the 
present  procedure.  There  were  certain  prescriptions,  wise 
as  they  were  humane,  which  ordered  that  the  judges  should 
observe  a  fast,  not  pronouncing  sentence  until  after  mature 
consideration,  and  in  cases  of  capital  offence  they  must 
even  defer  decision  until  at  least  one  day  after  the  exami- 
nation.1 Furthermore,  by  these  same  Eules  the  Sanhedrin 
was  forbidden  to  assemble  during  the  night,  or  to  hold  any 
sittings  before  the  early  sacrifice,  which  was  offered  at  sun- 
rise.2 Caiphas  and  his  colleagues  could  not  have  been  igno- 
rant either  of  these  statutes  or  of  the  contempt  displayed 
toward  them  by  such  actions  as  they  were  now  committing. 

Anxious  above  all  things  to  cover  up  any  such  irregu- 
larities on  their  part,  they  thought  to  accomplish  their 
object  by  causing  Jesus  to  appear  before  them  again  just 
at  daybreak.  The  short  interval  which  elapsed  between 
the  night-sitting  and  that  of  the  morning  did  not  alter  the 
fact  that  the  rule  which  commanded  a  day's  delay  was  in 
reality  infringed  ;  for  the  Jewish  law  counted  the  day  from 
evening  to  evening.  Yet  this  distinction  between  night 
and  day  gave  some  slight  semblance  of  legality  to  their 
proceeding's,  and  therewith  the  hatred  of  the  Sanhedrin 
was  fain  to  rest  content. 

Accordingly  Jesus  was  haled  before  His  judges,  and 
Caiphas  began  by  repeatedly  inquiring :    — 

"  If  you  are  the  Christ,  tell  us." 

"  If  I  tell  you,"  He  replied,  "  you  will  not  believe  Me, 
and  if  I  question  you,  you  will  not  answer  Me,  nor  let 
Me  go."  4 

1  Sanhedrin,  4,  1.  2  Yoma,  3,  2.  3  Luke  xxii.  66-71. 

4  The  reading  ■$  airo\icrT)Te  (Luke  xxii.  68),  omitted  in  the  MSS.  of 
Sinai  and  the  Vatican,  ought  to  be  preserved,  for  it  is  supported  by  the 
authority  of  the  Vulgate  and  some  important  manuscripts. 


288      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Thus  He  reminded  these  Councillors  of  State  that,  only 
a  lew  hours  earlier  and  in  their  presence,  He  had  pro- 
claimed Himself  the  Messiah,  and  that  they  had  refused 
to  believe  Him.  Why,  then,  should  they  believe  Him  now  ? 
Every  question  which,  since  His  return  to  Jerusalem,  He 
had  addressed  to  them,  whether  it  concerned  John's  bap- 
tism or  had  reference  to  the  Christ,  was  still  lei't  unan- 
swered. They  did  not  intend  to  answer  Him  now  any  more 
than  hitherto  they  had  done ;  as  for  releasing  Him,  that 
they  would  never  do.  And  notwithstanding  this,  Jesus 
consented  to  repeat  once-  again  and  in  the  same  terms, 
what  He  had  said  during  the  night  just  past, — that  He  was 
the  Son  of  Man  and  Son  of  God.  Vainly  had  they  struck 
and  bruised  Him,  covering  Him  with  spittle  and  vile  abuse; 
thereafter,  even  as  before  this  opprobrium,  He  revealed  to 
His  executioners  how,  afar  off,  their  Victim  was  to  appear 
all  triumphant  in  the  panoply  of  celestial  glory,  seated  at 
the  right  hand  of  the  Most-High. 

"  You,  then,  are  the  Son  of  God  ? "  was  the  demand  of  the 
Sanhedrim 

"  You  have  said  it,"  replied  Jesus  ;  "  I  am  He." 

"  What  further  need  have  we  of  witnesses  ?  " 1  they  cried 
instantly,  "  we  have  heard  it  for  ourselves,  from  his  own 
mouth." 

Springing  to  their  feet  at  these  words,  they  ordered 
Jesus  to  be  bound  still  more  closely  and  hurried  him  away 
to  the  Pretorium2  forthwith. 


V.     Death  of  Judas. 

Matt,  xxvii.  3-10;  Acts  i.  16-19. 

By  a  righteous  retribution  of  human  nature,  the  first 
victim  of  this  iniquitous  judgment  was  the  very  man  who 
had  been  its  prime  mover  and  first  cause.     Standing  un- 

1  T/  ?rt  ^x°Ate''  lija-prvplas  xPe<-av  '■>  (Luke  xxii.  71.)  By  these  words  it  is 
evident  that  another  consultation  had  preceded  this,  where  witnesses  had 
been  summoned  and  heard. 

2  Mark  xv.  1. 


DEATH  OF  JUDAS.  289 

heeded  among  the  rabble  of  onlookers,  in  silence  Judaa 
had  looked  long  and  intently  upon  his  Victim,  now  finally 
separated  from  him  ;  disquieted  at  heart,  uneasy,  still  cher- 
ishing some  secret  hope  perhaps  that  Jesns  would  over- 
whelm His  judges  and  escape  them  in  the  end.  But  when 
he  had  witnessed  His  condemnation  and  had  followed  Him 
as  far  as  the  Governor's  Palace,  remorse 1  was  at  last  fully 
aroused  in  him.  The  life  of  Jesus,  as  he  had  witnessed  it 
day  by  day,  seemed  to  repass  before  his  eyes  in  one  mighty 
but  distinct  whole,  and  the  last  words  of  the  Master  re- 
sounded in  his  ears  like  an  audible  rebuke.  Crushed  and 
distraught  with  shame,  possessed  with  a  sort  of  madness, 
he  started  forthwith,  not  in  search  of  Jesus,  Who  would 
have  repaid  him  with  peace  and  salvation,  but  bent  upon 
finding  the  priests  who  had  been  his  accomplices  in  crime. 

He  had  noted  that,  upon  leaving  the  Palace  of  Ca'iphas, 
they  turned  down  a  street  leading  to  the  Temple ;  thither 
he  repaired  2  and  mounted  the  stairway  which  divides  the 
Sanctuary  from  the  Gentiles'  Court.  Between  the  Priests' 
porches  and  those  of  the  Jews  stood  the  Hall  of  Gazith. 
Although  it  was  no  longer  the  regular  assembly-chamber 
for  the  Sanhedrin,  everything  leads  us  to  presume  that  it 
was  here  Judas  found  the  priests  and  ancients  gathered 
together. 

"  I  have  sinned,"  lie  cried  ;  "  I  have  betrayed  the  blood  of 
The  Just  One ; "  and  his  shaking  hand  held  out  the  thirty 
shekels  before  their  faces. 

Their  only  reply  to  this  wretched  appeal  was  disdainful 
enough : — 

"  What  does  that  matter  to  us  ?     That  is  your  affair." 

Judas  drew  back  the  silver  ;  then,  in  a  frenzy  of  despair, 
as  he  crossed  the  great  entrance  of  the  Holy  Place,3  he  flung 

1  Matt,  xxvii.  3.  Mexa^eX^ei's  denotes  that  the  mind  only  of  Judas 
had  been  enlightened,  but  that  his  heart  remained  what  it  had  been  here- 
tofore,—  the  heart  of  a  traitor,  cold,  egoistic,  and  covetous  :  he  had  changed 
his  opinions  and  his  thoughts,  but  without  arriving  at  that  conversion  of 
the  heart  winch  Scripture  alludes  to  by  the  term  fxeravoeiv  (Trench,  Syno- 
nyms of  the  New  Testament,  p.  241). 

2  Matt,  xxvii.  3-10. 

3'Ei'  ry  vaqi,  "  in  the  Sanctuary  itself."  Trench,  who  with  Meyer  and 
Alford   maintains  this  meaning,  challenges   his  opponents  to  produce  a 

VOL.  II   19 


290      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

down  the  price  of  his  treachery,  there  on  the  threshold,  and 
disappeared. 

The  priests  picked  up  the  coins ;  hard  by  stood  the  huge 
coffers  destined  to  receive  alms-gifts. 

"  It  is  not  permitted  us,"  they  said,  "  to  put  this  money 
into  the  Treasury,  since  it  is  the  price  of  blood."  l 

0  marvellous  scrupulosity  of  these  Doctors  of  Israel,  so 
accustomed  to  listen  to  nothing  but  their  own  evil  pas- 
sions, yet  requiring  so  much  deliberation  before  deciding 
as  to  the  disposition  of  thirty  pieces  of  silver !  Happily 
Judas  came  to  their  aid. 

On  quitting  the  Temple,  he  took  the  road  which  descends 
toward  the  Fountain  of  Siloe.  At  the  spot  where  Kedron 
joins  Brook-Hinnom,2  he  started  up  the  sombre  recesses  of 
the  latter,  whose  aspect  was  not  of  a  nature  to  soothe  his 
despairing  soul.  Even  to-day,  Jerusalem  has  no  chillier 
nor  gloomier  region,  —  a  deep,  narrow  gorge,  with  beetling 
cliffs  of  jagged  rocks,  overshadowed  here  and  there  with 
dark  olive-trees,  while  still  in  this  deep  ravine,  long  ago 
cursed  by  Jeremy,  the  memory  of  those  sacrifices  to  Moloch 
seems  always  to  rise  uppermost  in  one's  mind.  Judas  made 
his  way  up  the  acclivity  which  rises  opposite  Mount  Sion, 
and  came  to  a  halt  in  a  clay  field  belonging  to  a  potter 
thereabouts.  From  this  point  his  eye  could  sweep  the 
whole  pathway,  along  which  he  had  last  night  dragged  his 
Victim,  from  Gethsemani  to  the  Pontiff's  Palace ;  and,  as 
he  gazed,  his  mind  altogether  gave  way  under  the  burthen 
of  mad  despair.  Then,  says  Saint  Matthew,3  "  he  went  and 
hanged  himself;  "  and  in  the  Acts  it  is  added  that  "  the  rope 
broke  ;  his  body,  falling  headlong  to  the  earth,  burst  asunder, 
and  his  bowels  were  spilled  over  the  Field  of  Blood."  4  When 

passage  where  wos  is  put  for  iepov  (Synonyyns  of  the  New  Testament, 
p.  11). 

J  Deut.  xxiii.  18  ;  Sanhedrin,  112. 

2  As  we  have  already  ohserved,  Hinnom  Valley  is  the  gloomy  Gehenna 
of  the  Rabbis  :  Ge-Hinnom,   DJH  Wi. 

8  Matt,  xxvii.  5. 

4  Hakel  Dania  :  NOT  7pH  (Acts  i.  19).  Some  modern  exegetical  schol- 
ars think  that  any  efforts  to  harmonize  S.  Matthew's  narrative  with 
the  Acts  (Acts  i.  18)  would  be  time  thrown  away.     Comparing  these  two 


DEATH   OF  JUDAS.  291 

informed  of  his  death  the  Sanhedrin-Councillors  hastened 
to  dispose  of  their  accomplice,  whose  conscience-stricken 
end  would  go  far  toward  witnessing  to  the  innocence  of 
Jesus.  The  thirty  shekels  which  were  once  Judas's,  still 
lay  in  their  hands ;  with  them  they  purchased  the  potter's 
field,  in  order  to  bury  the  body  on  the  very  spot  where  its 
bowels  had  gushed  forth  ;  then,  hoping  to  efface  the  memory 
of  his  crime,  they  consecrated  this  region  as  a  burial-place 
for  such  foreign  proselytes  as  should  thereafter  die  in  the 
city.  But  the  citizens  of  Jerusalem  were  informed  of  the 
tragic  end  of  Judas,  and,  as  this  accursed  ground  had  drunk 
the  blood  of  the  traitor,  they  called  it  Haceldama,  —  "the 
Field  of  Blood." 

Saint  Matthew,  as  he  is  wont  to  do,  here  again  refers  to 
the  words  of  the  ancient  Prophets.  This,  then,  was  the  very 
scene  which  Jeremy  1  had  had  before  his  prophetic  vision 

accounts  with  that  of  Papias  (Migne,  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  v.  p.  1259), 
which  pictures  Judas  as  surviving  his  suicide,  but  afflicted  with  such 
brutish  obesity  that  shortly  thereafter  he  was  struck  down  and  crushed 
by  a  chariot,  they  conclude  that  in  the  primitive  Church  there  were  three 
different  versions  of  the  traitor's  death,  and  hence  all  we  can  know  for  cer- 
tain is  that  he  came  to  a  violent  end.  Most  commentators  do  not  recog- 
nize any  such  difficulty  in  conciliating  the  Testament  descriptions.  The 
only  serious  difficulty  is  in  connection  with  the  potter's  field  which  was 
bought  by  the  priests,  according  to  S.  Matthew,  but  by  Judas,  if  we  take 
the  literal  sense  of  the  words  in  the  Acts  (i.  18).  To  clear  up  this  point  it 
is  sufficient  to  remember  that  S.  Matthew  relates  details  with  exactness, 
while  S.  Peter,  in  the  Acts,  is  using  all  an  orator's  freedom  of  expression. 
After  having  reminded  his  brethren  that  the  traitor  had  been  one  of  their 
number,  that  he  had  taken  part  in  the  Evangelical  ministry,  that  glorious 
Heritage  which  Jesus  left  to  His  disciples  :  i\a%e  tov  KXrjpov  r?)s  5iaKovias 
rai/TTjs,  he  proceeds  to  compare  these  divine  riches  with  the  field  whereof 
the  dead  body  of  Judas  now  had  possession  and  the  only  gain  accruing 
to  him  from  his  iniquity  :  eKryjcraTo  xwPi0V  *K  fJ-ivOov  rrjs  ddtfeias.  This 
contrast  naturally  suggested  the  figurative  use  of  eKTrjaaro,  "he  pos- 
sessed." But  the  more  precise  testimony  of  S.  Matthew  prevents  us  from 
taking  the  word  in  other  than  a  metaphorical  sense. 

1  Matt,  xxvii.  9  ;  Jer.  xix.  1-15.  The  text  attributed  to  Jeremy  by 
S.  Matthew  is  really  that  of  the  Prophet  Zachary.  Many  different  solu- 
tions have  been  given  for  this  difficulty  ;  the  most  probable  is  as  follows  : 
At  a  glance  S.  Matthew's  eye  sweeps  the  array  of  prophetical  witnesses 
who  have  foreshadowed  this  event :  Zachary  predicting  the  ingratitude  of 
Israel,  Jeremy  shattering  the  earthen  vessel  in  Hinnom  Valley,  and  dur- 
ing the  siege  buying  the  field  of  Anathoth,  whereon  the  Chaldean  army 
was  encamped.  These  various  memories  he  combines  in  a  paraphrase  of 
the  sacred  text,  and  this  he  puts  in  the  mouth  of  Jeremy,  who,  in  the  eyes 


292    TI1E  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

when  long  since  he  descended  Ilinnom  Valley,  before  ever 
it  was  blasted  by  God's  maledictions.  In  those  days,  in- 
deed, it  was  a  garden  of  delight,  whose  wooded  banks  were 
freshened  by  the  waters  of  Siloe;  but  beneath  its  shadow- 
ing arches  and  round  about  the  fagots  heaped  up  in  honor 
of  Moloch  there  had  reechoed  unholy  choruses,  mingling 
with  the  clash  of  cymbals  and  psalteries.1  The  Prophet 
advanced,  followed  by  the  elders  of  the  priesthood  and  the 
people,  holding  in  his  hand  a  vessel  of  that  very  same  clay 
which  in  after  days  was  to  enclose  the  remains  of  Judas  ; 
and  he  broke  it  in  their  presence,  saying :  — 

"  I  will  break  this  City  and  this  people  even  as  this  ves- 
sel whose  fragments  can  nevermore  be  put  together,  and 
Tophet  shall  become  a  field  of  sepulchres  and  corpses." 

So,  likewise,  it  was  Judas'  crime  which  Zacliary  had 
predicted  when,  picturing  the  ingratitude  of  Israel,  Jeho- 
vah's chosen  Hock,  he  describes  this  people  giving  unto  its 
shepherd,  for  a  recompense,  thirty  shekels,  —  which  is  the 
price  of  a  slave  ;  and  the  shepherd  seizes  this  goodly  wage, 
the  price  whereat  Jesus  was  valued  in  the  eyes  of  the  Jews, 
that  so  it  might  be  thrown  to  the  Potter,  in  payment  of  his 
waste  ground.2 

of  the  Jews,  was  the  greatest  of  the  Prophets  (Lightfoot,  Horcn  Hebraiaz, 
in  Matt,  xxviii.  9).  This  quotation  is,  therefore,  in  the  nature  of  a  free 
commentary  upon  the  sacred  text.  The  Targums  show  us  what  liber- 
ties were  taken,  at  this  period,  in  paraphrasing  the  books  of  the  Old 
Testament. 

1  "Tophet,  quae  est  in  valle  filiorum  Enom,  ilium  locum  significat  qui 
Siloe  fontibus  irrigator,  et  est  amoenus  atque  nemorosus,  hodieque  horto- 
ruin  prsebet  delicias"  (S.  Jerome,  Oommentar.  in  Jeremiam,  lib.  ii.  cap. 
vii.  ver.  30,  31). 

-  Zaeh.  xi.  12,  13.  The  words  of  Zachary,  as  cited  by  S.  Matthew, 
show  considerable  diversities  from  the  Septuagint  Version,  and  even  if  we 
compare  them  with  the  original  Hebrew,  they  are  far  from  being  a  faithful 
translation.  There  is  no  reason  for  astonishment,  however,  for  besides  the 
fact  that  it  was  necessary  to  depart  somewhat  from  the  sacred  text  in  order 
to  make  the  application  to  Judas'  death  more  apparent,  in  itself  this  pus- 
sage  presents  some  actual  difficulties.  The  principal  one  is  in  regard 
to  our  interpretation  of  the  words:  TtfVTn-Sx.  Upon  the  authority  of 
Kimchi  and  two  MSS.  quoted  by  Kennieott,  Ewald  rends  "IVi-TH-iK,  as 
"in  the  Treasury,"  and  translates  it  thus:  "Jehovah  saith  unto  me: 
Cast  into  their  Treasury  the  goodly  price  whereat  I  was  valued  in  their 
eyes."     Evidently  S.  Matthew  has  not  read  "  in  the  Treasury,"  but  "unto 


DEATH  OF  JUDAS,  293 

By  these  Prophecies  the  Lord  had  revealed  His  be- 
trayal long  beforehand,  and  now  He  had  permitted  it  to  be 
fulfilled. 

the  potter,"  as  it  also  stands  in  the  Septuagint,  which  translates  it  by  els 
t6  x^vtuTripLov.  To  explain  this  rather  obscure  phrase,  Lange  supposes 
that  in  the  vestibule  of  the  Temple  was  a  certain  place  destined  to  receive 
cast-away  articles,  with  tins  inscription:  "For  the  Potter,"  or,  better, 
"  For  the  Founder"  (Septuagint),  which  is  nearly  synonymous  with  our 
common  term  "Rubbish  Heap."  The  rest  of  the  passage  is  freely  trans- 
lated by  S.  Matthew.  In  place  of  VtfX  ID'H  "HX  DIT^S  'fOp."? 
"the  magnificent  price  whereat  1  was  esteemed  by  them,"  the  Evangelist 
reads    ^P'H    (cari  ;  sestimati),   rod   TeTi/j.Tjfj.ei'ov,  and    by  the   Inestimable 

Treasure  he  understands  Jesus,  whom  they  have  valued  at  so  vile  a  sum. 
Toward  the  end  of  the  quotation  S.  Matthew  departs  still  further  from 
the  original  text,  where  we  read  :  "  And  I  cast  the  money  unto  the  potter 
in  the  Temple  of  the  Lord."  This  the  Evangelist  paraphrases  in  these 
terms  :    "  And  they  gave  this  silver,  the  price  of  the  potter's  held." 


CHAPTEE   III. 

JESUS  AT  THE  PRETORIUM  AND  BEFORE   HEROD. 

John   xviii.   28-40;    Matt,   xxvii.   2,   11-25;    Mark  xv.   1-14;   Luke 
xxiii.  1-25. 

The  Sanhedrin,  as  we  have  seen,  had  determined  to 
deliver  Jesus  to  the  jurisdiction  of  Pilate;1  the  priests, 
however,  because  their  presence  was  demanded  at  the 
Temple  for  the  morning  sacrifice,  could  not  accom- 
pany Him ;  but  the  rest  of  the  assembly  formed  a 
lengthy  retinue  around  Jesus,  which,  after  crossing  the 
town,  conducted  the  Prisoner  within  the  precincts  of  the 
Pretorium.2 

The  Roman  Governors  were  accustomed  to  take  up  their 
residence  in  the  palaces  of  the  princes  whom  they  had  sup- 
planted, and,  generally  speaking,  the  Procurators  occupied 
Herod's  royal  seat  on  Mount  Sion ; 3  but  during  the  Paschal- 
tide,  Pilate  resided  in  Antonia,4  the  fortress  erected  north 

1  Matt,  xxvii.  2. 

2  Pretorium,  "  Prretorium,  Tabernacuhun,"  in  its  primitive  sense,  the 
tent  of  a  general,  set  up  in  the  centre  of  the  Roman  camp  ;  afterwards 
this  word  came  to  he  employed  to  designate  the  governor's  residence 
in  the  provinces  which  they  administered  (Pauly,  Real  Encyclopaedic : 
Prjstorium). 

8  Philo,  De  virtutibus  et  legations  ad  Caium,  p.  38  ;  Josephus,  Bcllum 
Juda'icum,  ii.  14,  8. 

4  Antonia  is  not  spoken  of  by  name  in  the  Gospel ;  but  we  know  from 
Josephus  that  the  place  of  the  Lithostrotos,  where  Pilate  had  his  judgment- 
seat  (John  xix.  13),  was  in  front  of  this  fortress  [Bellum  Juda'icum,  vi. 
1,  8).  The  historian  tells  us  of  a  centurion  sweeping  down  with  his  men 
from  Antonia  to  drive  hack  the  Jews  toward  the  Temple,  and  gliding  first 
over  the  pavement  of  the  Lithostrotos.  Hence  it  follows  plainly  that  that 
square  extended  between  the  Fortress  and  the  porches  of  the  Sanctuary. 


JESUS  AT  THE  PEE  TORI UM.  295 

of  the  Temple  and  overlooking  the  porches.  From  the 
steep  heights  of  this  citadel,  he  could  beat  down  any 
tumult  of  revolt,  while  at  the  same  time  he  enjoyed  its 
large  and  kingly  appointments,  its  lofty  galleries  and  baths, 
with  the  immense  courts  where  his  legionaries  could  all 
comfortably  be  encamped.1 

Borne  along  into  one  of  these  halls,  Jesus  stood  at  last 
in  Pilate's  presence.  He  was  not  altogether  a  stranger  to 
the  Governor,  for  although  Galilee  and  Perea,  the  usual 
field  of  His  Ministry,  were  not  subject  to  the  Eoman  juris- 
diction, yet  his  preaching  had  so  deeply  stirred  Jerusalem 
that  reports  of  these  events  must  have  reached  Csesarea2 
long  before  now.  Beside  this,  Pilate's  wife  3  had  come  to 
be  secretly  drawn  to  the  worship  of  Jehovah,4  and  there- 
after, touched  by  the  virtue  of  Him  Whom  she  called  "  The 
Just," 5  she  had  often  conversed  with  the  Procurator  con- 
cerning Him.  Accordingly  we  see  him  fully  informed  as  to 
everything  concerning  Jesus,  —  His  title  of  Christ,  the  re- 
lentless spite  of  the  Sanhedrin,  and  the  bitter  fanaticism 
which  had  hunted  Him  down. 

The  Captive  was  alone  ; 6  His  accusers,  despite  their  ani- 

Tradition,  without  identifying  Antonia  with  the  Pretorium  in  formal  terms, 
has  always  located  the  latter  to  the  north  and  near  the  Temple,  conse- 
quently in  the  spot  where  once  stood  the  ancient  Citadel.  The  earliest 
evidence  is  that  of  the  Bordeaux  Pilgrim  who  visited  the  Holy  City  in  333 
(fifty  years  before  S.  Jerome)  :  "  Inde  ut  eas  foris  de  Sion  euntibus  ad 
portam  Neapolitanam  (now-a-days  called  the  Damascus  Gate),  ad  partem 
dextram,  deorsum  in  valle  sunt  parietes  ubi  domus  fuit,  sive  prsetorium 
Pontii  Pilati ;  ibi  Dominus  auditus  est  antequam  pateretur ;  a  sinistra 
autem  parte  est  monticulus  Golgotha,  ubi  Dominus  crucifixus  est."  It 
was  only  in  the  time  of  the  Crusades  that  any  one  thought  of  trans- 
ferring Pilate's  residence  to  the  Hill  of  Sion  (Tobler,  Topographie  von 
Jerusalem,  Erstes  Buch,  S.  225). 

1  Josephus,  Bcllum  Judaicum,  v.  5,  8. 

2  This  town,  then  recently  founded  by  Herod  upon  the  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean,  was  the  usual  residence  of  the  Roman  Governors. 

3  The  laws  which  forbade  Proconsuls  to  have  their  wives  accompany 
them  into  the  provinces,  had  fallen  into  desuetude  (Tacitus,  Annates, 
iii.   33). 

4  Gospel  of  Nicodemus,  ii. 

5  Matt,  xxvii.  19. 

6  S.  John  notes  particularly  that  Jesus  was  introduced  alone  into  the 
Pretorium ;  (Lyovcnv  eh  rb  wpaiTibpiov  .  .  .  /ecu  dvrol  ovk  elaf/XOov  ;  that 
Pilate  left  Him  there,  i^rj\0ev  ofo>  6  IletXaros,  and  returned  immediately, 


2%      THE  PASSION  AM)  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

niosity,  could  not  venture  to  cross  the  threshold  of  the  Pre- 
torium.  The  dread  of  being  contaminated,1  and  thereby 
debarred  from  participating  in  the  Passover,  could  even 
overmaster  the  longings  which  now  filled  their  breasts  to 
support  their  denunciations  in  person.  However,  if  only 
by  the  shackles  which  pinioned  Jesus'  arms,  Pilate  would 
easily  understand  that  the  Sanhedrin  desired  His  death,  it 
being  their  usage  to  deliver  up  in  this  condition  such  con- 
demned felons  as  they  judged  worthy  of  the  extremest 
penalty  of  the  law.  2 

At  sight  of  Jesus,  the  first  feeling  of  the  judge  was  one 
of  pity;  there  was  nothing  in  His  attitude  which  could  be 
attributed  to  the  pride  of  a  seditious  brawler,  nothing  which 
in  any  way  invited  punishment.  Naturally  endowed  with 
the  keenness  common  to  all  Roman  politicians,  Pilate  sus- 
pected some  plot  and  began  to  think  that  perhaps  he  would 
find  occasion  to  revise  rather  than  to  confirm  the  Sanhe- 
drin's  sentence.  Nevertheless,  out  of  respect  for  the  Jews' 
scruples  who  refused  to  enter  within  the  house,  he  went 
forth  and  met  them  in  the  outer  court. 3 

"  What  accusation,"  he  inquired,  "  do  you  bring  against 
this  man  ? " 

The  Sanhedrin  had  hoped  that  their  eagerness  and  the 
moment  at  which  they  presented  themselves4  would  have 
prevailed  with  Pilate.  Their  disappointment  found  its 
utterance  in  bitter  terms. 

to  find  Him  still  there  .  .  .  darjkQcv  els  rb  irpaiTibpiov  TrdXiv  6  TTeiAaTos 
(John  xviii.  28,  29,  33). 

1  "The  house  of  a  heathen,"  so  we  read  in  the  Talmud  (Eroubin,  62,  2), 
"shall  In-  until  your  eyes  ;is  that  of  an  animal."  Hence  some  have  con- 
cluded  that  the  contamination  so  dreaded  by  the  San hediin-mem hers  was 
only  tlie  stain  contracted  by  touching  any  unclean  object,  which  should  1* 
purified  on  the  very  same  day.  But,  according  to  the  testimony  of  Mai- 
monides  (Pesachim,  vi.  1),  nothing  could  be  more  uncertain  than  the 
duration  of  this  impurity.  Moreover,  when  it  was  within  one  day's  time, 
thai  was  quite  enough  to  prevent  one  from  taking  part  in  the  Paschal  Kites 
(Maimomdes,  ibidem). 

2.S.  Jerome  in  Matt,  xxvii.  2. 

8  John  xviii.  29-31. 

4  Ordinarily  the  Roman  judges  did  not  hold  their  sittings  before  the 
third  hour  of  the  day  (9  o'clock  in  the  morning).  (Friedlieb,  Archaologie, 
S.  105.) 


JESUS  AT  THE  'PRETORIUM.  297 

"  If  this  man  were  not  a  malefactor1  we  would  not  have 
delivered  him  up  to  you." 

This  arrogant  answer  pricked  the  Governor's  temper, 
and  he  responded  in  turn  with  an  accent  of  irony  and 
disdain. 

"Take  him  yourselves,"  he  said,  "and  judge  him  accord- 
ing to  your  laws." 

Would  not  e.x communication,  with  the  thirty-nine  lashes 
from  the  whip,2  administered  in  the  synagogue,  be  enough 
to  punish  any  infringement  of  their  rights  ? 

"We  no  longer  have  the  power  of  putting  any  one  to 
death,"  replied  the  Jews,  disclosing  in  this  manner  how  far 
they  wished  to  proceed.  Mysterious  disposition  of  Provi- 
dence !  God  had  deprived  them  of  all  power  over  human 
life  only  that  they  might  not  stone  the  Christ,  according 
to  the  Law,  but  that  Borne  should  lift  Him  up  upon  the 
( !ross,3  "  whereby  He  shall  draw  all  men  unto  Him."  4  Thus 
it  was  necessary  that  the  saying  of  Jesus  wherein  He  fore- 
told by  what  death  He  was  to  die  should  be  fulfilled. 

Evidently  Pilate  was  not  inclined  to  ratify  the  com 
demnation  of  Jesus,  but  intended  to  review  the  whole 
procedure  and  judge  the  case  for  himself.  Summoned  to 
produce  the  leading  points  in  their  accusation,  the  Sanhe- 
drin  resigned  themselves  to  necessity.  The  title,  "  the  Son 
of  God,"  which  the  Saviour  had  attributed  to  Himself, 
though  the  real  cause  of  His  ruin,  was  left  unnoticed ;  but 

1  The  received  text  has  KaKowoios.  The  reading  kclkov  ttoiwv,  adopted 
by  Tischendorf,  signifies  :  "If  he  had  not  been  taken  in  the  commission  of 
a  crime  ..." 

-  The  number  of  stripes  was  fixed  at  forty  by  the  Law  (Deut.  xxv.  3). 
But  in  their  fear  of  overstepping  this  limit,  the  Synagogue  inflicted  only 
thirty-nine.  The  condemned  person,  stripped  to  the  waist,  received  a 
third  part  of  the  blows  across  the  breast,  the  other  two-thirds  upon  the 
shoulders.  The  man  executing  this  sentence  stood  upon  a  stone  at  one 
side  and  lashed  him  with  leather  thongs.  S.  Paul  suffered  this  punish- 
ment five  times  before  the  Synagogue  (2  Cor.  xi.  24).  {Marcoth, 
iii.  2.) 

3  The  crucifixion,  in  use  not  only  at  Rome,  but  among  various  nations 
of  antiquity,  was  never  adopted  by  the  Jews,  who  were  content  with  sus- 
pending the  body  of  the  guilty  man  after  death  (Smith,  Dictionarn  of  the 
Bible :  Crucifixion). 

4  John  xii.  32. 


298       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

since  by  declaring  Himself  the  Christ  He  thereby  pro- 
claimed Himself  King  of  Israel,  the  latter  claim  was  urged 
against  Him,  as  of  itself  crime  enough ;  and  the  accusa- 
tion, reduced  to  these  three  charges,  was  so  framed  in  order 
to  stir  Pilate  to  vengeance l  most  surely. 

"We  have  found  him,"  they  said,  "exciting  the  people, 
forbidding  to  pay  tribute  to  Caesar,  and  calling  himself  the 
Christ-King." 

But  Pilate  knew  the  Jews  too  well  to  be  duped  by  their 
sudden  zeal  to  avenge  the  wrongs  of  Koine.  And  besides 
this,  his  officers  had  not  informed  him  of  any  signs  of  an 
incipient  conspiracy,  nor  of  any  refusal  to  submit  to  the 
taxes.  Hence  he  lent  scanty  credence  to  rumors  of  a  sedi- 
tion which  would  have  given  him  little  trouble  to  repress ; 
but  the  word  Christ  caught  his  attention.  What  was  the 
significance  of  this  title,  which  seemed  to  involve  at  once 
a  civil  and  a  religious  dignity  ?  What  royalty  could  the 
Prisoner  now  in  his  hands  lay  claim  to  ?  Determined 
upon  getting  some  light  upon  this  question,  Pilate  reentered 
the  Pretorium  and  summoned  Jesus.2 

Thus,  then,  the  Saviour  was  left  alone  with  His  judge,  — 
far  removed  from  the  Jews  whose  distant  cries  of  "  Death 
to  the  Nazarene  ! "  still  reached  His  ears.  Pilate,  by  screen- 
ing Him  from  their  furious  clamor,  had  already  let  it  be 
seen  that  his  heart  was  not  indifferent  to  the  spectacle  of 
such  misfortunes.  Jesus,  far  from  profiting  by  this  to  plead 
His  own  interests,  was  altogether  absorbed  in  the  cause  of 
eternal  Truth,  and  sought  only  to  make  it  descend  within 
the  soul  of  this  man  now  standing  before  Him,  —  puzzled 
and  uncertain,  still  in  the  darkness,  yet  just  catching  a 
glimpse  of  some  celestial  radiance  meanwhile.  Pilate  was 
the  first  to  speak.3 

"  Are  you  truly  king  of  the  Jews  ? "  he  asked  Jesus. 

1  Luke  xxiii.  2. 

2  John  xviii.  33-38. 

5  Pilate  was  only  a  simple  Procurator  (cum  jure  gladii).  "Christus, 
Tiberio  imperitante,  per  procuratorem  Pontium  Pilatum  supplicio  affectua 
erat"  (Tacitus,  Annates,  xv.  44).  Hence  he  had  no  qusestor  to  conduct 
the  examination  ;  accordingly  we  see  him  performing  this  office  in  person 
(Pauly,  Real  Encyclopadie :  Procurator,  Quaestor). 


JESUS  AT  THE  PRETORIUM.  299 

Always  more  attentive  to  the  thought  than  to  the  words 
of  His  questioners,  the  Saviour  answered  him  :  — 

"  Do  you  say  this  of  yourself,  or  have  others  told  you 
this  of  Me  ? " 

Surprised  at  finding  his  mind  so  easily  penetrated,  the 
Governor  responded,  brusquely  :  — 

"  Am  I  a  Jew,  forsooth  ?  Your  nation  and  your  Pon- 
tiffs have  delivered  you  up  to  me.  What  have  you 
done  ? " 

This  question  drew  forth  no  reply.  Altogether  intent 
upon  the  inward  struggle  which  was  now  agitating  Pilate, 
Jesus  beheld  with  infinite  compassion  that  he  was  trying 
to  crush  down  the  movements  of  grace,  which  were  calling 
him  to  the  truth,  his  conscience  besetting  him  evermore 
with  that  persistent  question  :  — 

"What,  then,  is  this  kingdom  of  his  ?" 

Accordingly  it  was  rather  to  this  unspoken  and  secret 
question  that  the  Christ  made  answer,  — 

"My  Kingdom  is  not  of  this  world.  If  My  Kingdom 
were  of  this  world,  My  Ministers  would  strive  that  I  should 
not  be  delivered  to  the  Jews."  But  —  as  you  may  see 
from  My  fetters,  from  My  forsaken  state  —  "  My  Kingdom 
is  not  from  hence." 

"  Then  you  are  a  king  ?  "  exclaimed  Pilate. 

"  Thou  hast  said  it,"  answered  Jesus ;  and  He  added 
words  which  Saint  John  has  not  recorded  at  length,  but 
certainly  they  were  sufficient  to  confirm  this  declaration : 

"  I  was  born  and  I  came  into  the  world  in  order  to  ren- 
der homage  unto  the  Truth.  Whosoever  is  of  the  Truth 
heareth  My  voice  ! " 

"  What  is  truth  ? " l  queried  Pilate,  and  then  at  once 
turned  away,  to  escape  the  ascendency  which  Jesus  was 
exerting  over  him. 

1  How  many  men  every  day  repeat  Pilate's  query,  and  like  him  are  still 
beset  with  anxieties  and  doubts  because  they  turn  away  and  do  not  listen 
to  the  Saviour's  answer  ?  Happier  far  are  they  who  hearken  to  the  Mas- 
ter's words  :  unto  them  there  shall  be  rest  and  peace  in  the  Truth  !  "  O 
Veritas  Deus,  fac  me  unum  tecum  in  caritate  perpetua !  Taceant  omnes 
doctores  ;  sileant  omnes  creaturse  :  tu  mihi  loquere  solus  !"  (De  Imita- 
tione  Christi,  lib.  1,  cap.  iii. ) 


300      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

And  with  this  thought  he  went  out  to  the  Jews  and 
bespoke  them  again,  with  the  assertion,  — 

"  I  find  nothing  worthy  of  death  in  this  man." 

At  this  answer  to  their  appeals,  the  cries  of  rage  burst 
out  more  wildly  than  before.  The  priests  and  ancients 
persisted  with  great  violence,  besieging  the  Governor's  ears 
with  accusations  which  grew  ever  vaguer,  more  contradic- 
tory  and  often  entirely  incomprehensible  to  him.  He  had 
Jesus  brought  forth.  His  very  presence  excited  a  new  fury 
of  abuse  ;  indeed  it  would  seem,  from  Saint  Matthew's  text, 
that  the  Sanhedrin-Councillors  began  to  cross-question  Him 
directly,  but  all  to  no  purpose.1 

"  Do  you  not  hear,"  Pilate  said,  turning  toward  Him,  "  of 
how  many  things  they  accuse  you  ? " 

Still  Jesus  answered  not  a  word.  This  silence,  this 
peaceful  calm  in  the  midst  of  a  raging  rabble,  filled  the 
Governor  with  admiration. 

He  was  now  casting  about  for  some  escape  from  his 
predicament,  while  still  the  Jews  pleaded  with  fiercer 
persistency;  this  time  asserting, — 

"  He  stirs  up  the  people,  teaching  throughout  all  Judea, 
beginning  from  Galilee  to  this  place."2 

The  name  "  Galilee  "  was  a  ray  of  light,  —  thrown  out 
with  the  design  of  reminding  the  judge  of  the  uneasy  char- 
acter of  that  province  and  the  blood  of  its  conspirators 
lately  shed  in  the  Temple ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  it  only 
suggested  an  expedient  whereby  he  might  extricate  him- 
self from  all  responsibility  in  the  affair.  Immediately 
Pilate  demanded  whether  Jesus  was  a  Galilean,  and  hav- 
ing learned  that  He  belonged  to  Herod's  jurisdiction,  he 
remanded  3  Him  to  the  Tetrarch  forthwith. 

1  Matt,  xxvii.  12-14  ;  Mark  xv.  3-5. 

2  Luke  xxiii.  5-7. 

3  'Aveirefiipa'  (Luke  xxiii.  7).  "Propriam  Romani  juris  vocem  usurpa- 
vit .  Nam  remittitur  reus,  qui  alicubi  comprehensus  mittitur  ad  judicem 
aut  originis  aut  hahitationis  "  (Grotius,  in  loco).  That  is,  he  made  Him 
pass  from  the  "forum  delicti  commissi,"  into  the  "forum  originis  vel 
domicilii"  (Pauly,  Real  Encyclopadie :  Forum,  II.,  Gerichtsstand  des 
Criminalprozesses).  Such  acts  of  courtesy  were  not  rare  on  the  part  of 
these  politic  Romans  (Acts  xxv.  9  ;  Josephus,  Bcllum  Juda'icum,  iii.  10, 
10  ;  Dionysius  of  Halicarnassus,  Antiquitatcs,  iii.  22). 


JESUS  BEFORE  HEROD.  301 

This  Prince's  suite  was  quartered  in  the  ancient  residence 
of  the  Machabees,1  to  which  Herod's  sons  had  retired  when 
their  father's  palace  was  occupied  by  the  Roman  governors. 
Thither  the  legionaries  conducted  Jesus,  surrounded  by  His 
enemies.  We  shall  not  try  to  follow  the  Saviour  over  this 
portion  of  His  sorrowful  journey ;  but  it  is  hardly  probable 
that  his  guards  would  have  forced  him  to  descend  the  steep 
side  of  Moriah  and  then  reascend  the  Hill  of  Sion,  when 
by  crossing  from  the  western  portico  of  the  Temple  and 
over  the  bridge  of  Tyropoeon,  they  could  at  once  reach  the 
Prince's  palace. 

The  appearance  of  Jesus  before  him  excited  only  a  frivo- 
lous pleasure  in  Herod's  mind,  for  his  depraved  soul  was 
now  incapable  of  even  such  anxieties  as  were  troubling 
Pilate's  conscience.  For  a  long  time  he  had  been  kept  in- 
formed of  all  the  reports  concerning  the  Christ,  and  he  was 
only  too  anxious  to  be  an  eye-witness  of  some  of  His 
prodigies.2  Undoubtedly  the  young  Physician,  to  escape 
execution,  would  satisfy  his  curiosity  by  performing  some 
miracle.  Full  of  such  ideas,  Herod  at  first  treated  the 
Prisoner  with  some  show  of  respect,  plied  Him  with 
questions,  and  pressed  Him  to  display  His  supernatural 
power. 

But  Jesus  had  sounded  the  shallow  depths  of  this 
Prince's  mind  ;  and  He,  Who  had  had  only  words  of  ten- 
der mercy  for  Pilate,  deigned  not  so  much  as  a  word  in 
reply  to  Herod.  This  silence  disconcerted  the  Tetrarch  ; 
the  Sanhedrin-party,  on  the  other  hand,  were  not  less  de- 
ceived. They  had  counted  upon  recovering  their  ascen- 
dency with  a  prince  of  their  nation,  and,  without  urging 

1  In  fact,  under  Festus,  we  find  Agrippa  the  Younger  erecting  a  gallery 
upon  this  residence,  whence  he  could  enjoy  a  view  of  the  Temple  (Jose- 
phus,  Antiquitates,  xx.  8,  11)  ;  Agrippa  II.,  in  the  last  days  of  his  reign, 
here  assembled  the  rebellious  people  ;  in  a  word,  all  we  know  about  the 
several  sojourns  of  Herod's  children  at  Jerusalem  during  the  Roman  occu- 
pation, is  connected  with  this  Palace  of  the  Machabees.  It  stood  upon 
the  site  of  the  house  of  Libanus-wood  constructed  by  Solomon,  and  on  the 
northeast  of  Sion  covered  the  angle  formed  by  the  Tyropoeon  Valley, 
which,  just  opposite  the  Temple,  ceases  to  run  north  and  south,  turning 
eastward,  in  the  direction  of  the  present  Gate  of  Jaffa. 

2  Luke  xxiii.  6-12. 


302       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

any  false  pretexts,  had  expected  him  to  strike  immediately 
at  what  was  must  hateful  to  them  in  Jesus,  His  Doctrine 
and  His  pretensions  to  the  title  of  the  Messiah;  but  all 
their  furious  entreaties  and  objurgations  were  thrown  away 
on  Herod. 

Of  Idumean  ancestry,  though  a  Jew  by  birth,  and  inclin- 
ing naturally  toward  the  scepticism  of  the  Sadducees,  the 
Tetrarch  had  long  ago  stifled  his  conscience  too  thoroughly 
to  admit  of  his  now  taking  any  interest  in  questions  of 
religion.  And,  further  than  this,  by  condemning  Jesus 
would  he  not  run  the  risk  of  a  popular  movement  in  His 
favor  ?  Or  at  any  rate,  there  was  the  possibility  of  incur- 
ring such  terrors  as  had  assailed  him  after  the  execution  of 
John  Baptist!  Anxious  above  all  things  not  to  endanger 
his  own  comfort,1  the  despotic  egoist  lost  no  time  in  re- 
turning compliment  for  compliment,  by  remanding  Jesus 
back  again  to  Pilate.  Provoked,  however,  at  having  beeu 
so  set  at  naught,  he  desired  on  his  side  to  display  his  dis- 
dain for  the  Christ  and,  in  token  of  derision,  had  Him  ar- 
rayed in  a  white  robe.2  What  was  this  garment  meant  to 
travesty  ?  Perhaps  the  consul's  toga  3  or  that  of  the  Roman 
candidates,4  thus  disguising  Jesus  as  though  he  were  some 
puppet  sovereign  of  the  stage ;  or  was  it  perhaps  the  garb 
assumed  by  Jews  acquitted  of  capital  offence,5  Herod  indi- 
cating by  this  that  he  regarded  the  Prisoner  as  a  fool,  in- 
capable of  any  crime  ?  The  Procurator  appears  to  have 
interpreted  it  in  this  last  sense,  for,  in  arguing  with  the 
people  for  the  life  of  the  Christ,  he  urged  in  His  defence 
this  burlesque  acquittal. 

Distasteful  as  it  was  to  Pilate  to  resume  a  trial  of  which 
he  had  thought  himself  disburthened,  yet  he  took  consid- 
erable satisfaction  from  this  mark  of  courtesy  on  Herod's 

1  "  Fond  of  a  quiet  life,"  says  Jossphus,  Antiquitates,  xviii.  7,  2. 

^'EaOrjTa  \a/jnrpdv,  according  to  Lightfoot  and  Ellicott,  signifies  a  robe 
of  purple.  But  the  idea  we  associate  with  \afxirp6s  is  that  of  a  whiteness 
as  dazzling  as  light ;  and  this  epithet,  especially  as  applied  to  garments, 
usually  denotes  that  tiny  are  white. 

8  Tacitus,  Historicc,  ii.  91  ;  Valerius  Maximus,  i.  6,  11. 

4  Pauly,  Real  Encyclopedic  :  Candidattjs. 

6  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xiv.  9-4,  xvi.  9,  3  ;    Yoma,  f.  19,  1. 


JESUS  AT  THE  PRETORIUM.  oO'S 

part,  and  their  mutual  deference  put  an  end  to  all  resent- 
ment between  them.  The  Governor's  undertakings,  hitherto 
hostile  to  the  Tetrarch's  authority ;  the  blood  of  the  Gali- 
leans shed  in  the  Temple,  —  everything  in  fact  was  forgot- 
ten, and  on  this  same  day  they  became  friends. 

Once  again  Jesus  was  hurried  along  the  road  to  Antonia. 
The  insulting  magnificence  with  which  He  was  attired  ren- 
dered His  wretched  state  more  striking.  Pilate  was  touched 
thereat,  and,  fortified  by  Herod's  dismissal,  endeavored  to 
wrest  their  Victim  from  the  Sanhedrin's  clutches.  Accord- 
ingly he  assembled  the  princes  of  the  priesthood  and  the 
magistrates ;  but  they,  on  their  part,  bent  upon  forcing  his 
consent,  had  collected  a  mob  of  the  populace  in  order  to 
influence  him  further.1 

With  Jesus  at  his  side,  Pilate  addressed  them. 

"  You  have  produced  this  man  before  me,"  he  said,  "  and 
accuse  him  of  exciting  the  people ;  and  now  I,  after  having 
examined  him  before  you,  find  nothing  in  him  touching 
what  you  charge  him  withal.  And  in  like  manner  Herod, 
to  whom  I  referred  you,2  has  found  nothing  in  him  worthy 
of  death." 

Whether  a  threatening  silence  or  a  fresh  outcry  greeted 
these  words,  Pilate  at  all  events  believed  it  was  best  to 
make  amends  for  them  somehow,  so  he  added  :  — 

"  I  will  chastise  him,  therefore,  and  let  him  go." 

Lightly  as  he  regarded  the  penalty  referred  to  in  these 
words,  it  was  none  the  less  a  piece  of  iniquitous  acquies- 
cence on  his  part,  and  a  sign  of  weakness  which  could  not 
escape  the  Sanhedrin-part}^  They  resolved  to  push  their 
advantage  with  all  their  strength. 

Meanwhile  the  crowds  were  beginning  to  ascend 3  the 

1  Luke  xxiii.  13-16. 

2  The  reading :  aviTrep.\f/ev  yap  avrbv  irpos  ij/xds  has  been  adopted  by 
Teschendorf  in  his  eighth  Edition  ;  but  although  contained  in  the  Vatican 
and  Sinaitic  MSS.,  it  is  not  as  well  authorized  as  the  ordinary  text : 
ave-rvipxpa  v/xas  irpbs  avrbv,  which  is  found  in  the  Alexandrian  MS.,  Bezas 
Codex,  and  the  Latin  and  Syriac  Versions. 

3  'Avafids  (Mark  xv.  8).  The  received  text  here  has  :  avafSo-qaas,  which 
is  in  the  Alexandrian  MS.,  and  the  Syriac  Version.  Rut  the  reading 
dra/3ds  is  given  on  the  authority  of  the  Latin  Versions,  the  Vatican  MS. 
and  Beza's  Codex. 


304     THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION   OF  JESUS. 

approaches  to  the  Fortress  Antonia,  attracted  either  by  the 
assembly  drawn  up  before  the  Pretorium  or  to  take  part  in 
a  ceremony  which  was  always  performed  just  at  this  time. 
Daring  the  morning  of  the  Parasceve,  the  Roman  gover- 
nors, in  order  to  heighten  the  solemnity  of  Passover-time,1 
had  always  granted  a  pardon  to  some  prisoner  designated 
by  the  Jews.  This  custom,  of  which  we  find  no  trace 
either  in  Scripture  or  in  the  Rabbinical  traditions,  had 
doubtless  been  introduced  by  some  procurator,  anxious  to 
conciliate  his  new  subjects.2  Rome,  always  ready  to  ex- 
tend amnesties,  either  in  public  calamities3  or  at  the  anni- 
versaries of  the  Caesars,  afterward  consecrated  this  favor 
accorded  by  one  of  her  magistrates,  and  we  see  Pilate  re- 
specting the  observance  as  though  it  had  all  the  force  of  a 
law.4 

The  sight  of  the  multitudes  thronging  the  square  of 
Gabbatha,5  and  with  loud  shouts  demanding  this  privilege, 
suggested  a  new  expedient  to  Pilate's  mind.     Among  the 

1  Kara  eopr-qv  (Matt,  xxvii.  15.)  "At  each  Festival"  ( Bernhardy, 
Syntax,  S.  240).  'Eoprrji',  employed  alone,  designates  the  Passover,  and, 
moreover,  S.  John  states  expressly  :  'Ei>  t<£  Ilatrxa   (John  xviii.  39). 

2  "Sic  enim  quasdam  gratias  praestant  gentes  iis  quos  subjiciunt  sibi, 
donee  confirmatur  super  eos  juguin  ipsorum"  (Origen,  in  Mat.,  Oommen- 
tariorwm  Series;  Migne,  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  xiii.  p.  1771). 

3  Titus  Livy,  Histories,  v.  13. 

4  AvdyKrjv  8£  tlxiv  diro\vtu>  avrols  Kara,  eoprrjv  'iva.  (Luke  xxiii.  17. 
This  seventeenth  verse,  which  breaks  the  continuity  of  S.  Luke's  narrative, 
is  regarded  by  Tischendorf  and  Tregelles  as  an  interpolation,  and  it  is  true 
that  it  has  disappeared  from  the  Vatican  and  Alexandrian  MSS.  ;  but  it  is 
preserved  in  its  present  place  by  the  Sinaitic  MS.,  the  Vulgate,  and  the 
Syriac  Version,  and  besides  it  bears  some  intrinsic  marks  of  authenticity. 
Would  a  forger,  when  borrowing  a  quotation  from  the  other  Evangelists, 
—  which  Tischendorf  supposes  to  be  the  case,  — have  substituted,  instead 
of  taking  their  words,  an  entirely  different  text,  one,  too,  which  contains  a 
favorite  expression  with  S.  Luke:  av4,yicr)P  dx^>>.  Is  it  not  more  likely 
that  the  copyists,  finding  that  this  verse  interrupted  the  narrative,  trans- 
ferred it  from  its  place  after  verse  19,  to  where  we  now  find  it  in  Beza's 
Codex  and  the  Peshito  \  Probably  it  has  disappeared  from  some  manu- 
scripts in  consequence  of  this  transposition.  The  two  words  :  dvdyicrjv  5e, 
dv^Kpayou  5^  which  begin  and  end  with  the  same  letters,  explain  moreover 
how  this  omission  could  have  occurred. 

5  Gabbatha  :  "Raised  Place,  Terrace,"  from  the  root  H3J,  "to  be 
high  ;  "  or  perhaps  (on  account  of  the  reduplicated  /3  in  the  Greek  ra(3j3a.8cL) 
from  the  root  DJ  :  "back,  ridge,  summit."  In  Greek  S.  John  trans- 
lates the  words  by  XtOSo-rpwros  •   "  paved  with  stones." 


JESUS  AT   THE  PRETOBIUM.  305 

condemned  who  were  to  be  executed  according  to  custom 
during  the  Paschal  season,1  there  was  a  man  named  Bar- 
rabas,2 notorious  for  his  wickedness.3  At  the  bead  of  a 
riotous  herd,  he  had  caused  bloodshed  in  Jerusalem  itself, 
and  headed  a  revolt,  not  only  against  the  authority  of 
Pome,  but  against  that  of  the  Sanhedrin  as  well;  for  it 
was  from  their  prison4  that  the  Governor  was  about  to 
procure  him.  Saint  John's  exclamation,  remembering  how 
that  the  divine  Master  was  compared  to  him,  is  testimony 
enough  as  to  the  contempt  with  which  the  criminal  was 
popularly  regarded :  — 

"  Now  Barrabas  was  a  robber  !  "  5 

Pilate  hoped  that  between  this  scoundrel  and  the  inno- 
cent One  Whom  they  were  pursuing,  the  Jewish  populace 
would  not  hesitate  to  give  the  latter  the  preference. 

"  Whom  do  you  wish  me  to  deliver  to  you  ? "  he  cried, 
"  Barrabas,  or  Jesus  who  is  called  Messiah  ? "  And  so 
speaking,  lie  ascended  the  steps  of  the  tribunal,6  set  before 
the  Pretorium. 

No  sooner  was  he  seated  than  some  of  his  servants  came 
in  search  of  him,  sent  thither  by  his  wife. 

From  her  apartments  in  the  Fortress,  she  was  now  look- 

1  The  usage  of  reserving  any  capital  executions  for  Festival-days,  in 
order  to  excite  a  salutary  terror,  was  not  peculiar  to  the  Jews  ;  we  find  it 
an  established  custom  at  Rhodes  for  the  feasts  of  Chronos,  and  at  Athens 
and  the  Ionian  cities  for  the  Thargelia  (Sepp,  Leben  Jesu,  b.  vi.  s.  225). 

2  Bar-abbas,  "The  Son  of  the  Father."  Ewald  prefers  Barrabban, 
"The  Son  of  the  Rabbi."  The  Syriac  Dictionary  of  Jerusalem,  the  Ar- 
menian Version,  etc.,  contain  another  reading,  to  the  effect  that  the  name 
of  this  insurrectionary  was  Jesus  Barrabas.  Origen  was  aware  of  this 
opinion  and  makes  mention  of  it.  Ewald  and  Meyer  have  adopted  it ; 
but  Tischendorf,  in  his  last  edition,  rejects  it  as  supported  by  too  doubtful 
authorities. 

3  Matt,  xxvii.  16  ;  Mark  xv.  7. 

4  Eixof  (Matt,  xxvii.  16),  like  ijdeXop  above,  takes  6x^0$  as  its  subject. 
From  this  expression  we  may  conclude  that  the  Jews  still  retained  custody 
of  their  own  prisoners,  under  the  superior  jurisdiction  of  the  Roman 
Governor. 

5  John  xviii.  40. 

6  Btj/j.0.,  the  estrade,  ordinarily  a  rectangular  platform  on  which  was  set 
the  curule  chair  of  the  Roman  magistrates.  Though  at  first  constructed 
of  stone,  it  was  afterwards  made  of  wood,  so  that  it  might  be  more  easily 
transported  (Pauly,  Real  Encyclopedic  :  Tribunal). 

vol.  ii.  —  20 


306      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

ing  down  upon  this  scene.  Tradition  tells  us  that  her 
name  was  Claudia  Proeula,1  and  that  she  was  a  pious 
lady,2  one  of  the  "proselytes  of  the  gate" 8  so  numerous 
just  then  in  the  ranks  of  the  Roman  nobility;4  a  divine 
light  had  shown  her  that  the  doctrine  of  Jesus  was  still 
perfecter  than  the  Law  of  Jehovah.  All  the  night  previous 
a  strange  uneasiness  had  taken  possession  of  her  at  the 
first  report  that  the  young  Teacher  was  to  be  arrested  ;  nor 
had  sleep  in  the  least  calmed  her  anguish  of  spirit,  but  all 
night  long  terrible  dreams  had  disturbed  her  slumbers. 
Consequently,  when  she  saw  Jesus  encircled  by  the  furi- 
ous mob,  with  Pilate  hesitating  and  half  prepared  to  con- 
demn Him,  she  bade  some  of  her  people  bear  this  message 
to  her  husband  :  — 

"Let  there  be  nothing  between  you  and  that  just  man, 
for  I  have  been  greatly  distressed  in  a  dream  this  day 
because  of  him." 

Alone  against  all  these  wicked  judges,  these  false  wit- 
nesses, these  inhuman  wretches,  a  pagan  woman  found, 
deep  down  in  her  heart,  enough  of  strength  and  tender- 
ness to  plead  the  cause  of  Jesus.  Of  this  deed  Christians 
have  ever  cherished  a  grateful  memory,  while  the  Greeks 
have  given  her  a  place  in  their  Menology  in  the  company 
of  the  Saints. 

But  these  few  moments  had  been  turned  to  their  own 
advantage  by  the  priests  and  magistrates.  Spreading  their 
views  through  the  multitude,  they  finally  had  succeeded  in 
inflaming  them  with  their  fierce  passions,  persuading  them 
to  choose  Barrabas  in  preference  to  the  Saviour.5 

1  Perhaps  this  name  of  Claudia  may  indicate  some  relationship  with  the 
Gens  Claudia,  from  whom  the  Emperor  Tiberius  was  spiling. 

2  Nicephorus,  Histories,  i.  30  ;  Fabricii,  Codex  Apocryphus,  t.  i./p.  398  ; 
t.  ii.,  p.  242. 

3  lP#n  '74  :  so  called  in  allusion  to  that  passage  of  Exodus,  xx.  10  : 
"  On  this  day  you  shall  do  no  work,  neither  you  nor  the  stranger  who  is 
within  your  gates."  By  this  name  they  designated  those  Pagans  who, 
without  being  circumcised,  renounced  their  idols,  and  observed  what  the 
Talmudists  call  the  Seven  Precepts  of  Noe,  which  forbade  sacrilege,  incest, 
murder,  etc. 

4  Juvenal,  Satircr,,  vi.  543  ;  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xviii.  3,  5. 
6  Matt,  xrviii.  20. 


JESUS  AT  THE  PRETORIUM.  307 

And  so,  when  Pilate  demanded  for  the  second  time : 1 
"  Do  you  wish  me  to  deliver  to  you  the  king  of  the  Jews  ?  " 
one  unanimous  shout  rose  from  the  surging  populace  :  — 

"  Eid  us  of  him  2  and  release  Barrabas  ! " 

"  What  shall  I  do,  then,  with  him  whom  you  call  the  king 
of  the  Jews  ? "  replied  the  Governor. 

"Crucify  him,  crucify  him!"  responded  the  crowd  with 
one  voice. 

"  But  what  evil  has  he  done  ? "  persisted  the  judge,  now 
become  advocate  for  his  prisoner.  "  As  for  me,  I  find  no 
cause  of  death  in  him.  I  will  chastise  him  therefore  and 
let  him  go." 

But  then  the  multitude  repeated  with  wilder  tumult, — 

"  Crucify  him,  crucify  him  !" 

"  And  their  horrible  efforts  against  Him  grew  in  strength 
evermore,  clamoring  that  he  might  be  crucified,  while  still 
the  shouts  continued  to  increase."3 

Seeing  that  he  gained  nothing,  while  on  the  contrary  the 
uproar  was  only  swelling,  Pilate  wished  to  declare  plainly 
that  he  looked  upon  Jesus  as  a  just  man,  and  that  he 
intended  to  disclaim  any  responsibility  for  His  death.4 
There  was  a  custom  in  Israel  which  ordained  that  the 
magistrates  of  any  city  where  the  author  of  a  murder  re- 
mained undiscovered  should  wash  their  hands  over  the 
corpse  of  the  victim,  in  witness  of  their  own  innocence.5 
This  deed,  prescribed  by  Deuteronomy,  served  the  Gover- 
nor in  place  of  further  speech  with  the  people,  who  were 
sharply  watching  his  every  action.  He  therefore  ordered 
water  to  be  brought,  and  therewith  washed  his  hands. 

"  I  am  innocent  of  the  blood  of  this  just  man,"  he  said ; 
"  now,  then,  it  is  your  own  concern  ! " 

Whereupon  all  the  people  answering  said :  — 

1  Mark  xv.  9. 

3  Alpe  tovtov  (Luke  xxiii.  18).  "  E  medio  tolle  :  "  Eid  us  of  this 
Jesus  ?  Atpui  in  Hellenistic  Greek  has  this  meaning  :  deliver  us,  dis- 
burthen  us  of  some  one  by  removing  him,  by  putting  him  to  death  (Acts 
xxi.  36  ;  xxii.  22  ;  Pionysius  of  Halicarnassus ;  Philo,  etc.). 

8  Luke  xxiii.  22,  23  ;"Mark  xv.  14. 

*  Matt,  xxvii.  24-26 . 

6  Deut.  xxi.  6. 


308      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

"His  blood  be  upon  us  and  upon  our  children  !" 
Pilate  had  not  courage  to  resist  further,  and  discharging 
Barrabas,  released  from  his  chains,  lie  delivered  over  the 
Christ  into  the  bauds  of  the  soldiery.  Doubtless  he  did 
not  mean  as  yet  to  abandon  Him;  but,  because  whipping 
was  the  first  preliminary  for  crucifixion,  he  hoped  that  the 
blood  of  Jesus  would  appease  His  enemies  and  enable  him, 
even  yet,  to  rescue  Him. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE  CONDEMNATION   OF  JESUS. 
Matt,  xxvii.  26-30  ;  Mark  xv.  15  :  John  xix.  1-16. 

The  scourging  inflicted  upon  Jesus  was  a  cruel  torture. 
Stripped  of  his  garments  and  fastened  by  the  wrists  to 
a  low  column,1  the  condemned  person  offered  his  back  to 
blows  which  tore  his  flesh.  The  instrument  of  punish- 
ment for  foreigners  was  not  the  rod  of  elm-wood  re- 
served for  Roman  citizens,  but  a  leathern  thong,  armed  with 
knobs  of  bone  and  balls  of  lead.  At  every  cut  from  this 
horrible  lash  2  the  skin  was  raised  in  ragged  furrows,  blood 
streamed  forth,  and  frequently  the  victim  would  fall  at  the 
lictors'  feet,  thereby  exposing  every  portion  of  his  frame 
to  their  attacks.  It  was  no  rare  thing  to  see  the  sentenced 
man  succumb  under  this  preliminary  torture ;  for  the  Roman 
law  had  not  set  any  limits  to  the  duration  of  their  suffer- 
ings, like  those  fixed  by  the  Sanhedrim3  No  rule  deter- 
mined the  number  of  blows ;  everything  was  left  to  the 
caprice  of  the  lictors,  who  stopped  at  nothing  short  of  a 
surfeit  of  cruelty  or  from  sheer  muscular  exhaustion. 

The  Gospels  record  this  whipping  without  entering  into 
its  details ;  but  the  silence  of  Jesus,  which  acted  as  a  sav- 

1  The  column  venerated  at  Rome  in  Saint-Praxed's  Church  is  a  sort  of 
pedestal  like  a  mile  stone,  0m,  70  in  height,  and  0m,  45  in  diameter  at  the 
base.  On  the  top  you  can  still  see  traces  of  a  ring.  It  seems  that  when 
it  was  carried  over  to  Rome  by  Cardinal  Colonna  (1223)  the  socket  \\;is 
left  at  Jerusalem.  It  is  of  black  marble  with  white  veins  (see  Rohaut  de 
Fleury,  Instruments  de  la  Passion).  The  fresco  in  the  great  nave  of  Saint- 
Praxed's  must  represent  the  appurtenances  of  the  scourging  with  consid- 
erable accuracy. 

2  "  Horribili  ilagello  "  (Horace,  Satires  I.,  iii.  119). 
8  See  vol.  ii.  p.  297,  note  2. 


310       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

age  spur  to  the  fury  of  the  executioners,  Pilate's  plan  to 
move  the  sympathies  of  the  Jews  by  the  spectacle  of  their 
Victim,  the  condition  to  which  the  Saviour  was  reduced, 
so  that  He  could  not  afterwards  sustain  His  Cross,  —  all 
the  facts,  indeed,  make  us  conjure  up  a  scene  of  prolonged 
agony.  It  all  took  place  in  the  Pretorium  and  under  the 
eyes  of  the  people,  for  we  see  that  immediately  after  the 
flagellation  the  soldiers  brought  Jesus  back  into  the  court 
of  Antonia.1 

And  there,  renewing  the  insulting  farce  just  now  enacted 
by  Herod  in  their  presence,  they  shouted  to  the  others  of 
their  cohort,  and  together  these  fellows  offered  their  scur- 
rilous  homage  to  the  new  "  Kiutr  of  the  Jews.'  z  Jesus, 
mounted  in  derision  upon  a  throne,  was  covered  with  a 
mantle  of  red  cloth3  such  as  the  legionaries  wore.  In  the 
mean  time  some  of  the  ruffians  had  woven  a  crown  of 
thorns4  with  which  they  at  once  encircled  the  Saviour's 

1  Matt  xxvii.  27  ;  Mark  xv.  16. 

2  Matt,  xxvii.  27-30. 

8  This  mantle  (saguvri)  was  fastened  upon  the  right  shoulder.  The 
generals  wore  it  in  this  fashion  ;  but  their  cloak,  called  paludamentum, 
was  longer  and  purple  in  color.  Hop<pvpav  (Mark  xv.  17)  refers  to  any  of 
the  several  shades  of  red,  but  especially  scarlet  :  kokkIvt)v  (Matt,  xxvii.  2S). 

4  Kxegetical  critics  are  very  much  at  odds  as  to  the  nature  of  the  plant 
which  was  used  in  weaving  the  crown  of  thorns.  Some  have  looked  upon 
it  as  the  Sea-rush  :  "  Junco  palustri  sceptra  cedant,"  says  one  of  the  old 
hymns  in  the  Roman  Breviary.  Others  call  it  the  Ehanmus,  a  species  of 
thorny  bush  very  common  in  Palestine,  thus  described  by  Dioscorides  : 
"The  Khamnus  grows  up  in  the  hedges,  bearing  straight  blanches,  with 
spikes  in  the  shape  of  sharp  thorns,  with  little  oblong  leaves,  rather  thick 
and  soft."  "This  shrub  is  so  bristling  with  thorns,"  adds  Cassiodorus, 
"that  it  holds  fast  to  anything  which  touches  it,  stings  the  flesh,  and 
then  swells  in  the  wound."  Is  not  the  answer  proposed  by  M.  Gosselin 
{Notice  ■•<">•  la  courorme  d!epines)  the  most  natural  way  of  conciliating  these 
different  opinions?  According  to  him  the  soldiers  used  the  sea-rush  or 
some  herbaceous  plant  to  bind  and  hold  in  place  the  thorns  with  which, 
they  wished  to  plat  a  crown  for  Jesus.  Now  the  relics  venerated  under 
the  name  of  the  'Crown  of  Thorns'  confirm  this  hypothesis;  for,  on  the 
oik!  hand,  the  sacred  relic  preserved  in  Paris  is  only  a  circlet  of  rushes, 
considerably  larger  than  the  circumference  of  the  head,  which,  conse- 
quently, it  could  have  encircled  even  when  bristling  with  thorns  ;  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  at  Pisa  and  in  other  places  we  find  small  branches 
of  a  thorny  wood  which  seems  to  be  a  kind  of  buck-thorn  rhamnus. 
"One  of  these  thorns,  which  we  have  examined, '  says  M.  Gosselin,  "was 
recognized  as  the  thorn  which  Linnajus,  along  with  the  older  botanists, 


THE   CONDEMNATION  OF  JESUS.  311 

head ;  then,  taking  a  reed  strong  as  wood,1  they  set  it  in 
His  hand.  With  a  throne,  a  crown,  a  sceptre,  nothing  was 
lacking  now  to  the  regal  state  of  the  new  Monarch,  save 
the  worshipful  fealty  of  His  subjects ;  accordingly  such 
tokens  were  lavished  upon  Him :  — 

"  Hail,  king  of  the  Jews  ! "  they  shouted,  reverently 
bending  the  knee  before  Him,  but  rising  again  only  to 
load  Him  with  rough  blows  and  with  spittle  discharged 
full  at  His  face. 

During  this  series  of  outrages  the  reed  slipped  from  the 
hand  of  Jesus,  Who  was  still  bound  tightly  and  utterly 
helpless ;  suddenly  they  seized  it,2  and  striking  that  sacred 
head,  drove  the  thorns  fast  within  His  brow.  The  com- 
passion which  Pilate  always  displayed  for  Jesus  makes 
it  impossible  to  believe  that  the  Governor  was  a  wit- 
ness of  this  scene.  However,  his  orders  had  been  faith- 
fully executed,  even  exceeded,  and  he  desired  to  profit 
thereby  to  excite  the  sympathy  of  the  people.  Once  more 
appearing  upon  the  square  of  Gabbatha3  he  bespoke  their 
attention. 

"  Behold,"  he  said  to  the  Jews,  "  I  bring  him  out  hither 
to  you,  that  so  you  may  know  I  find  no  crime  in  him." 

And  Jesus  came  forth,  the  crown  of  thorns  upon  His 
forehead,  the  red  robe  hanging  about  His  blood-stained 
body.  Then  they  forced  Him  to  mount  the  steps  of  the 
tribunal. 

"  Behold  the  man  ! "  Pilate  cried  to  the  throng. 

calls  Rhainnus  spina  Christi,  and  modern  students  Ziziphiis  spina  Christi. 
M.  Rohaut  de  Fleury  has  sketched  the  relic  preserved  at  Pisa  in  the 
charming  chapel  of  Santa-Maria  della  Spina.  "  It  is  a  branch  some  0m, 
080  in  length,"  he  says,  "having  formerly  borne  six  thorns,  whereof  only 
three  are  intact.  Some  are  straight,  the  others  are  shorter,  and  bent 
round  the  base  of  the  former.  The 'general  color,  especially  that  of  the 
thorns,  is  brown,  of  a  dark  and  glistening  hue  ;  upon  one  side  of  the  stem 
are  greenish  marks  still  very  plain."  The  spray  of  thorns  at  Treves,  as 
depicted  in  the  plates  given  by  Dom  Calmet,  presents  the  same  character. 

1  The  Reed  of  the  Passion  :  A r undo  donax.  The  ordinary  reed  would 
have  broken  at  the  first  blow. 

2"E\a.j3ov  (Matt,  xxvii.  30).  The  aorist  ?\afiov  seems  to  indicate  that 
they  took  the  reed  only  once,  while  the  imperfects  iv^vai^ov  and  Ztvtttov 
denote  that  the  insults  and  the  blows  lasted  a  long  time. 

3  John  xix.  4-16, 


312      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OE  JESUS. 

But  their  hearts  were  shut  now  against  pity. 
"  Crucify  him,  crucify  him  ! "  they  shouted. 
Their  cruelty  stirred  the  Governor's  indignation ;  he  had 
something  like  a  resolution  to  save  Jesus. 

"  Take  him  you  and  crucify  him ;  for  indeed  I  find  no 
cause  of  death  in  him." 

The  Jews  could  not  construe  this  as  meaning  a  permis- 
sion in  any  serious  sense ;  and  this  was  why,  upon  seeing  all 
their  accusations  were  of  no  avail,  they  at  last  unmask ed  the 
real  reason  of  their  relentless  hatred  of  Jesus,  —  His  so- 
called  blasphemy,  whereby  He  made  Himself  equal  with 
God,  a  crime  which  the  Law  punished  by  stoning1  the 
guilty  man.  Rome  respected  the  religious  customs  of  its 
subjects ;  they  therefore  hoped  that  the  Governor  would 
end  by  yielding  to  their  wishes. 

"  We  have  a  law,"  they  said,  "  and  according  to  that  law 
he  ought  to  die;  because  he  made  himself  the  Son  of 
God." 

Son  of  God!  The  words  threw  Pilate's  mind  into  a 
state  of  still  greater  uneasiness.  In  vain  did  he  turn 
away  from  the  Victim  Whom  his  soldiers  had  been  disfig- 
uring with  their  heavy  whips.  A  King  just  now,  Jesus 
had  suddenly  risen  above  the  ranks  of  mankind.  Yet  had 
not  this  Jew,  Whose  sole  crime  it  was  that  He  said  He 
was  the  Son  of  God, —  had  He  not,  perhaps,  justified  His 
high  claims  by  His  calm  bearing  amid  the  brutality  of 
His  torturers  ?  All  the  mythological  dreams  in  which 
Pilate's  childhood  had  been  cradled,  the  soldiers'  own 
story,  how  last  night  they  had  been  flung  back  to  earth  at 
His  word,  the  vision  appearing  to  his  wife,  these  all  came 
crowding  back  upon  his  mind. 

"  "What  did  they  mean  by  this  '  Son  of  God  V  Whence 
came  he  ?" 

More  troubled  than  ever,  he  bade  them  bring  back  the 
Saviour ;  then  alone,  and  face  to  face  with  Him,  he 
said  :  — 

"  Whence  are  you  ? " 
Jesus  made  no  reply. 

1  Lev.  xxiv.  16. 


THE  CONDEMNATION   OF  JESUS.  313 

"What!"  exclaimed  the  Governor,  "do  you  not  speak 
to  me  ?  Do  you  not  know  that  I  have  both  power  to  cru- 
cify you  and  the  power  to  break  your  bonds  asunder  ?  " *• 

"  You  should  have  no  power  over  Me,"  responded  Jesus, 
"  if  it  were  not  given  you  from  above." 

Then  comparing  Pilate's  crime  with  that  of  the  Jews, 
He  distinguished  between  the  guilt  of  hatred  and  that  of 
weakness  :  — 

"  And  this  is  why  the  crime  of  him  who  delivers  Me  2 
into  your  hands  is  greater  than  yours." 

Yielding  finally  to  the  voice  of  conscience  the  Governor 
determined  to  release  Jesus ;  again  he  stepped  forth  from 
the  Pretorium,  whereupon  a  new  storm  of  cries  assailed 
him. 

"If  you  release  this  man  you  are  no  friend  of  Csesar;3 
whoever  makes  himself  a  king  is  Caesar's  enemy." 

Terrible  threat,  for  the  Csesar  of  that  day  was  Tiberius, 
and  no  one  there  but  knew  what  powers  lay  in  the  reach 
of  informers.  Even  Herod  had  not  been  able  to  defend 
himself  against  the  statements  of  these  Jews;  his  son 
Archelaus  had  lately  been  deposed  at  their  instance,  lit- 
tle more  than  this  would  be  enough  to  overwhelm  Pilate. 
Straightway  losing  sight  of  Jesus  his  mind  pictured  only 
that  suspicious  master  of  his  world,  who,  from  the  rocky 
heights  of  Caprea,  made  the  earth  tremble ;  saw  in  a  flash 

1  Lachmann,  Teschendorf,  and  Tregelles  transpose  the  members  of  this 
sentence  :  e^ouaiav  .  .  .  diroXvaai  <re,  kclI  .  .  .  GTavpCxrai,  and  it  must  be 
acknowledged  that  they  can  claim  the  weightiest  authorities,  —  the  Pe- 
shito,  the  Alexandrian,  Vatican,  and  Sinaitic  MSS.  But,  notwithstanding, 
the  order  preserved  l>y  the  Received  Text  and  the  Vulgate,  based  upon 
numerous  manuscripts,  is  more  in  accord  with  the  sequence  of  the 
narrative. 

2  'O  TrapadiSovs  (John  xix.  11),  in  the  present,  denoting  that  the  treason 
is  accomplished  at  this  very  moment.  Hence  it  is  not  Judas,  but  the 
Sanhedrin,  which  is  referred  to  by  Jesus  in  these  words.  The  MSS.  of 
Sinai  and  the  Vatican  give  the  aorist,  va.pa.8ovs,  which  does  not  change 
the  sense  of  the  phrase,   however. 

3  These  words  are  not  sufficient  to  prove  that  Pilate  had  been  honored 
with  the  title  "Amicus  Cajsaris,"  which,  under  the  Caesars,  was  reserved 
to  the  highest  dignitaries  of  the  Empire  (Suetonius,  Nero,  5  ;  Caligula, 
19  ;  Galba,  7).  Probably  they  have  no  further  meaning  than  this  :  "  You 
are  not  devoted,  not  faithful  to  Caesar's  interests." 

4  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  xvii.  13,  2  ;  Bcllum  Judcucum,  ii.  7,  3. 


314      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

the  Jews  summoning  him  before  this  inexorable  judge, — 
the  crime  of  high  treason  ]  charged  against  him,  —  his  for- 
tune plundered, —  then  exile  and  death.  He  could  make 
no  stand  against  these  phantoms  of  his  imagination;  fear 
of  the  future  overmastering  every  other  feeling  he  com- 
manded Jesus  to  be  brought  out,  and  himself  ascended  the 
judgment-seat.  It  was  the  eve  of  the  Pasch,  about  the 
sixth  hour  (between  half-past  ten  and  eleven  in  the  morn- 
ing2) ;  the  Jews  were  surging  wildly  about  the  high  tribu- 
nal where  Pilate,  although  become  the  tool  of  their  hatred, 

1  "  Majestatis  crimen  omnium  accusationum  complementum  erat " 
(Tacitus,  Annates,  iii.  38). 

2  Regarding  the  hour  when  the  death  sentence  was  pronounced  there  is 
an  apparent  contradiction  between  S.  Mark  and  8.  John.  The  latter  says 
that  Jesus  was  condemned  at  the  sixth  hour  (John  xix.  14)  ;  S.  Mark  that 
He  was  crucified  at  the  third  (Mark  xv.  2/J).  Must  we  suppose  that 
the  primitive  text  had  rp'nt)  in  S.  John  instead  of  Zktt],  —  7  in  place  of  s  ; 
or  that  S.  John  follows  the  Roman  custom  in  his  manner  of  reckoning 
the  hours,  while  S.  Mark  uses  the  Jewish  mode  ?  These  gratuitous  hy- 
potheses have  this  serious  disadvantage  in  the  first  place,  that  they  restrict 
the  several  scenes  of  the  Passion  to  a  very  limited  space  of  time.  The 
most  reasonable  solution  is  that  proposed  by  Maldonatus  and  Jansenius. 
They  call  our  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  ancients  did  not  count  the 
hours  with  the  same  precision  as  we  do.  The  Jews  out  of  the  twelve 
hours  distinguished  in  a  special  manner  the  third,  sixth,  and  ninth, 
which,  being  consecrated  by  the  Public  Prayers,  divided  the  day  into  four 
parts  corresponding  to  the  four  watches  of  the  night  (see  vol.  ii.  p.  147). 
Thus  by  "  Hours  "they  designated  the  several  quarters  of  the  day,  just  as 
they  reckoned  by  "Watches"  during  the  night.  S.  John's  expression 
u>pa  dxrel  Zktt),  therefore,  declares  that  it  was  near  the  end  of  the  three 
hours  comprised  under  the  general  name  of  "Third  Hour"  (from  nine 
o'clock  till  noon),  when  occurred  the  condemnation  of  Jesus;  while 
S.  Mark  in  recording  that  Jesus  was  raised  upon  the  Cross  at  the  third 
hour  merely  means  us  to  understand  that  the  crucifixion  took  place  before 
noon,  —  before  the  period  of  time  designated  by  the  term  "third  hour"  was 
completely  elapsed.  This  is  the  only  hypothesis  which  enables  us  to  see 
how  the  different  scenes  in  the  Passion  could  have  been  accomplished. 
Jesus  was  not  brought  before  Pilate  until  after  daylight  (6  in  the  morn- 
ing). His  first  examination,  His  appearance  before  Herod,  Pilate's  strug- 
gles with  the  Sanhedrin  faction,  all  these  must  have  occupied  more  than 
three  hours  ;  the  whipping,  the  crowning  with  thorns,  Pilate's  final  opposi- 
tion, doubtless  prolonged  the  Passion  another  hour.  So  that  we  are  easily 
led  to  adopt  Hengstenberg's  conclusion  that  the  last  decisive  sentence 
must  have  been  pronounced  between  the  times  noted  by  the  Evangelists, 
—  almost  half-past  ten.  One  hour  was  enough  to  conduct  Jesus  to  ( 'alvary 
and  to  crucify  Him  ;  and  accordingly  he  was  upon  the  gihbet  when, 
at  the  sixth  hour  (noon),  darkness  covered  the  face  of  the  earth  (Mark 
xv.  33). 


THE   CONDEMNATION  OF  JESUS.  315 

strove  still  to  command  respect  by  veiling  his  terrors 
under  a  semblance  of  haughty  contempt. 

"  This,  then,  is  your  king  ? "  he  began  again. 

But  his  voice  was  drowned  by  the  cries  of  the  multitude. 

"  Away  with  him,  away  with  him  ! " 

"  Crucify  him  .' " 

"  This  is  your  king ;  shall  I  crucify  your  king  ?" 

One  last  word  gave  the  spur  to  his  tardy  resolution. 

"  We  have  no  king  but  Csesar/'  shouted  the  chief 
priests.1 

Vanquished  at  last  he  delivered  Jesus  into  their  hands. 

His  crime  was  to  be  severely  punished ;  three  years  had 
not  elapsed  when,  upon  the  depositions  of  certain  Samari- 
tans,2 Vitellius,  Proconsul  of  Syria,  delegated  Marcellus  to 
take  in  hand  the  affairs  of  Judea,  and  enjoined  Pilate  to 
proceed  to  Eome,  and  there  clear  himself  of  the  accusa- 
tions brought  against  him.  The  fearful  misgivings  to 
which  he  had  succumbed  in  sacrificing  Jesus  became  reali- 
ties ;  condemned  in  his  turn,  despoiled  of  all  his  property, 
he  was  sent  into  exile.  Vienne  still  points  out,  upon  the 
banks  of  the  Phone,  a  high  pyramid  which  passes  for  the 
tomb  of  Pilate.  We  are  told  by  various  traditions  that 
it  was  here,  when  dragged  down  by  remorse,  the  banished 
man  put  a  violent  end  to  his  existence.  Still  other  le- 
gends would  have  us  believe  that,  in  the  midst  of  his  mis- 
fortunes, he  was  sought  out  by  the  grace  of  Jesus ;  and  the 
Abyssinian  Church  finds  a  place  in  the  ranks  of  the  saints 
for  this  weak-spirited  man  who,  nevertheless,  was  a  Chris- 
tian, says  Tertullian,  in  the  fugitive,  impotent  longings  of 
his  soul.3 

1  John  xix.  17. 

2  This  nation,  always  ready  for  insurrection,  complained  of  the  cruelty 
shown  by  Pilate  in  putting  down  one  of  their  popular  insurrections  (Jose- 
phus,  Antiquitatcs,  xviii.  4,  2). 

3  "  Ea  omnia  super  Christo  Pilatus,  et  ipse  jam  pro  sua  conscicntia 
ehristianus,  Caesari  Tibcrio  nuntiavit "  (Tertullian,  Apologeticus,  21). 
"  Magi  ab  Oriente,  Pilatus  ah  Occidente  venerat.  Unde  illi  orienti,  hoc 
est  nascenti  ;  ille  autem  occidenti,  hoc  est  morienti,  attestabantur  regi 
Juda?orum,  ut  cum  Abraham  Isaac  et  Jacob  recumberent  in  regno  coel- 
orum  "  (S.  Augustine,  Sermo  III.,  de  Ejnphania). 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  CRUCIFIXION. 

John  xix.  16-22  ;  Matt,  xxvii.  31-34,  37,  38  ;  Mark  xv.  20-23,  25-27  ; 
Luke  xxiii.  20-31,  38. 

A  long  road,  hallowed  by  the  veneration  of  centuries  as 
the  Via  Dolorosa,  now  opened  before  Jesus.  But  is  it  pos- 
sible, in  our  day,  to  still  discover  any  footprints  of  the  con- 
demned God,  or  to  retrace  step  by  step  that  Way  of  the 
Cross  now  followed  daily  by  so  many  Christians  ?  No,  we 
think  not;  however,  the  criticisms  which  have  been  lev- 
elled against  the  traditional  Stations  have  not  succeeded  in 
overthrowing  them  altogether.  The  Pretorium,  rising  just 
north  of  the  Temple,  unquestionably  marks  the  beginning 
of  the  Via  Dolorosa;  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre, 
whose  walls  enclose  Calvary,1  indicates  its  end;  so  that  at 

1  Everything  that  can  be  urged  against  the  authenticity  of  the  Holy 
Sepulchre  is  set  forth  in  the  Biblical  Researches  of  Robinson  and  the 
various  works  of  Fergusson.  On  the  other  side  Scholz,  Williams',  and 
de  Vogue,  pleading  in  defence  of  Tradition,  have  demonstrated  that  this 
Church  covers  the  original  site  of  the  Cross  and  the  Tomb  of  Jesus.  The 
proofs  which  they  produce  to  support  their  conclusions  are  so  striking  that 
they  have  obtained,  if  not  the  entire  assent,  at  least  the  respeci  of  all.  So 
then,  profiting  by  their  labors,  we  can  maintain  the  following  propositions 
as  incontestable  :  (1)  The  excavations  made  by  Saint  Helena  on  the  site 
of  tin-  Holy  Sepulchre,  ami  the  Basilica  erected  by  Constant ine  testify,  not 
t<i  a  contemporary  belief  merely,  but  furthermore  to  some  still  older  tradi- 
tion which  must  have  guided  them  in  these  researches.  (2)  Since  only 
one  hundred  and  fifty  years  separated  these  Christians  of  the  fourth  cen- 
tury from  tin'  Temple  of  Venus  erected  by  Hadrian  over  the  tomb  of  Jesus 
Christ,  the  memory  of  a  spot  so  precious  to  their  faith  might  certainly 
have  been  preserved  for  these  lew  generations.  And  Constantine.  more- 
over, by  means  of  the  census  tallies,  which  included  all  Palestine  (Ulpian 
Digest,  1.,  xv.  1,  56),  could  find  out  where  the  property  of  Joseph  of  Ari- 
mathea  was  located.  (3)  It  is  impossible  to  believe  that  the  Christians 
would  have  searched  for  tokens  of  their  holiest  mysteries  in  a  region  soiled 


THE   CRUCIFIXION.  317 

all  events  these  were  the  two  furthest  points  between 
which  stretched  the  road  trodden  by  Jesus  on  His  weary 
journey  to  execution  and  death. 

Now  precisely  this  line  is  the  one  in  fact  followed  by 
the  Via  Dolorosa.  Undoubtedly  heaps  upon  heaps  of  ruins 
have  accumulated  within  this  city,  where,  one  after  another, 
Romans,  Persians,  and  Mussulmans  have  burned  and  lev- 
elled everything  down  to  the  ground.  Sixty,  sometimes 
even  eighty,  feet  of  ashes  and  rubbish  now  conceal  the 
original  surface  over  which  Jesus  dragged  His  bleeding- 
feet.  But  though  it  would  be  childish  to  expect  to  find 
Jerusalem  wearing  the  same  features  to-day  as  in  the  time 
of  the  Saviour,  yet  neither  must  we  forget  that  the  East 
treasures  the  memory  of  names  and  places  with  wonderful 
fidelity.  Even  out  of  these  same  ruins  it  could  recon- 
struct the  Sanctuary,  the  sacred  Tomb,  all  the  overturned 
and  shattered  monuments.  These  long-cherished  recollec- 
tions of  the  Via  Dolorosa,  therefore,  have  a  real  value,  and 
they  indicate,  if  not  the  precise  spots,  at  least  that  quarter 
of  the  town  wherein  we  must  locate  the  scenes  of  the 
Passion. 

This  road  descended  from  the  Pretorium  into  Tyropceon 
Valley,  and  trending  westward  climbed  a  steep  hillside. 
Almost  along  the  summit  ran  the  city  walls,  and  farther 

by  a  voluptuary  worship,  unless  some  well-founded  traditions  had  con- 
strained them  to  the  step.  (4)  Even  the  difficulty  we  find  in  making  the 
actual  site  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  agree  with  the  Evangelists'  story  is  hut 
another  proof  of  the  authority  of  this  tradition;  for  if  caprice  alone  had 
guided  the  Christian  topographers  of  the  fourth  century,  how  was  it  they 
did  not  hesitate  when  confronted  with  the  objection  arising  from  S.  John's 
Testimony  (xix.  20)  when  compared  with  that  of  S.  Paul  (Hehr.  xiii.  12)  ? 
How  was  it  they  selected  a  spot  inside  the  city  limits  as  the  scene  of  an 
event  which,  from  the  evidence  of  contemporaries,  they  knew  took  place 
outside  the  ramparts  ?  (5)  Finally,  recent  excavations  confirm  the  ancient 
traditions.  Between  the  Holy  Sepulchre  and  the  lower  part  of  Jerusalem 
they  have  discovered  a  stone  wall  belonging  to  the  city  boundary  walls  as 
they  existed  in  the  time  of  Jesus  ;  so  then  the  tomb  was  outside  the  gates. 
And  besides,  the  existence  of  a  burial  cave  under  the  cupola  of  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  shows  plainly  that,  at  some  period  or  other,  this 
region  must  have  been  without  the  walls,  for  the  Jews  never  buried  their 
dead  within  the  town  limits  (see  Raumer,  Palestina,  355  ;  Schulz,  Jerusa- 
lem, 96,  99  ;  Caspari,  Einlcitung,  pp.  196,  260;  and  the  works  of  Scholz, 
Williams,  and  M.  de  Vogue). 


318       TUE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

afield,  hemmed  about  by  gardens  and  houses,  lay  the  place 
of  execution,  Golgotha.  This  name,  meaning  a  skull,1 
doubtless  in  those  days  designated  some  bald  and  lonely 
rock,  rising  from  out  the  earth  and  lying  skull-like  upon 
this  waste  stretch  of  open.  Certain  Jewish  traditions  de- 
clared that  the  head  of  Adam  had  been  interred  in  this 
place,2  thus  giving  it  its  name  ;  and  this  legend  heightened 
the  dread  with  which  it  was  surrounded  in  the  popular 
imagination.  Golgotha  must  have  been  but  a  short  dis- 
tance beyond  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  for  both  the  Greeks 
and  Romans  were  wont  to  execute  convicted  criminals  just 
at  the  gates  of  the  towns,3  and  near  some  thoroughfare 
sufficiently  frequented  to  make  the  spectacle  serve  as  a 
public  example. 

According  to  Saint  John's  narrative,  after  His  condemna- 
tion Jesus  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Jews : 4  "  Pilate," 
he  tells  us,  "  delivered  Jesus  to  them  to  be  crucified ;  then 
they  took  Him  and  led  Him  forth  to  death."  However, 
we  need  only  complete  this  evidence  by  comparing  it  with 
that  of  the  Synoptic  writers  to  feel  sure  that  some  of  the 
Roman  soldiers,  with  a  centurion  in  command,  acted  as  the 
executioners  of  a  sentence  never  in  use  among  the  Jews.5 
The  High-Priests  were  content  to  merely  countenance  the 
proceedings  by  their  presence. 

1  This  explanation  of  the  word  "Golgotha,"  given  hy  S.  Cyril  of  Jerusa- 
lem, appears  to  be  the  most  natural.  S.  Jerome,  with  many  other  scholars 
of  later  times,  thinks  that  the  origin  of  the  term  is  found  in  the  skulls  scat- 
tered about  the  place  of  execution.  But,  if  so,  the  word  should  be  in  the 
plural,  and  have  some  qualifying  term  at  least;  6  Kpavlwv  tottos  "The 
Place,  The  Hill  of  Skulls."  KnSj'M,  Chaldaic  form  of  the  Hebrew 
Phihj,  properly  signifies  "skull"  —  cranium,  and  S.  Luke  translates 
it  literally  by  Kpavlov  :  the  place  called   The  Skull,   C'alvaria,   Calvary. 

2  The  Death's  Head  and  the  hones  often  represented  lying  at  the  foot  of 
Crucifixes  are  a  memorial  of  this  tradition. 

3  Cicero,  In  Vcrrcm,  v.  66  ;  Plautus,  Miles  Gloriosus,  360.  There  was 
the  same  custom  among  the  Jews  (Hebr.  xiii.  13  ;  Num.  xv.  35  ;  3 
Kin^s  xxi.  13  ;  Acts  vii.  57). 

4  John  xix.  16. 

6  At  Rome  the  execution  of  convicted  criminals  was  handed  over  to  lie- 
tors  and  executioners  taken  from  the  lowest  ranks  of  the  people,  even  from 
the  servile  class  (Titus  Livy,  ii.  55  ;  Cicero,  Pro  Rabirio,  v.).  Did  the 
Roman  governors  carry  these  public  servants  with  them,  in  order  to  exe- 


THE  CRUCIFIXION.  319 

The  execution  followed  immediately  upon  the  sentence. 
This  was  Eomau  usage,  while  the  Jews  were  in  haste  to 
see  everything  finished,  for  fear  lest  the  body  should  be 
left  upon  the  cross,  and  thereby  profane  the  sanctity  of 
their  festival.1  Accordingly  the  procession  was  formed 
forthwith ;  at  its  head  rode  a  centurion  on  horseback,  be- 
hind him  walked  four  soldiers  surrounding  Jesus,  and  the 
two  criminals  sent  with  Him  to  their  death.  The  Saviour 
no  longer  wore  the  red  robe ;  His  executioners  had  taken 
it  from  Him,  and  again  covered  Him  with  His  own  gar- 
ments.2 But  His  head  still  bore  the  crown  of  thorns,  and 
about  His  neck  they  had  hung  a  tablet,  whereon  was  writ- 
ten His  condemnation.3 

The  instrument  of  torture  was  now  produced ;  its  form,4 

cute  their  sentences  in  the  provinces,  or  did  the  legionaries  themselves  fill 
these  functions  ?  This  is  indeed  a  point  in  archaeology  which  has  hitherto 
remained  in  obscurity,  and  the  recent  discussions  at  the  Institute  have  not 
succeeded  in  solving  the  question  (Memoires  de  V Academic  des  inscrip- 
tions et  belles-lettres,  t.  xxvi.,  2e  partie;  Recherches  sior  les  bourreaux  du 
Christ  et  sur  les  agents  charges  des  executions  capitales  cfiez  les  Romains, 
pp.  127-150  ;  and  the  Memoires  by  M.  Naudet  inserted  in  the  same  vol- 
ume, pp.  151  and  499). 

1  John  xix.  31. 

2  Mark  xv.  20. 

3  Frequently,  too,  a  lictor  bore  this  tablet  before  the  condemned  man, 
thereby  publishing  his  sentence  ;  but  this  does  not  appear  to  have  been  the 
case  with  the  Saviour's  inscription,  for  the  Jews  did  not  comprehend  its 
drift  until  they  saw  it  on  the  Cross.  The  tablet  had  been  given  the  name 
of  "titulus"  aavts.  Ordinarily  it  was  whitened  over  with  a  coating  of 
gypsum,  on  which  the  black  letters  stood  out  plainly  (Socrates,  Hisloria 
ecclesiastica,  i.  17  ;  Suetonius,  Caligula,  32  ;  Eusebius,  Historia  ecclesias- 
tica,  v.  1  ;  Dionysius  Cassius,  liv.  3). 

4  This  form  alone  answers  to  the  comparisons  used  by  the  Fathers,  who 
liken  its  shape  to  that  of  a  bird  in  full  flight,  to  a  man  swimming  or  pray- 
ing with  arms  outstretched,  and  to  the  four  cardinal  points  (S.  Justin, 
Dialogus  cum  Tnjphonc,  90  ;  Tertullian,  Apologeticus,  xvi. )  ;  it  is  also  the 
only  one  found  upon  the  primitive  monuments  of  Christian  art  (Aringlii 
and  Ciampini,  Vetera  Monimcnfa,  i.  tab.  xiv. ).  The  cross  was  only,  at  the 
first,  some  tree  where  the  criminal,  after  being  bound  or  nailed  thereto, 
was  left  to  expire  slowly  of  hunger  and  weakness.  Afterwards  it  assumed 
very  diverse  shapes.  Besides  the  Latin  Cross,  antiquity  was  familiar  with 
the  Cross  incorrectly  called  "S.  Andrew's,"  where  the  two  transverse 
beams  intersect  each  other  in  the  form  of  the  letter  X,  by  which  they  were 
enabled  to  wrench  the  prisoner's  legs  and  arms  as  wide  apart  as  possible. 
The  Cross  called  commissa  or  patibulata  was  made  in  the  figure  T,  and 
only  differs  from  the  Latin  Cross  in  not  having  the  support  destined  to 


320      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

as  preserved  by  Tradition,  is  known  to  us  by  the  name  of 
the  Latin  Cross, —  a  long  wooden x  post  intersected  near  the 
top  by  a  shorter  crossbeam,  intended  to  hold  the  hands, 
while  the  upper  part  was  intended  to  hear  the  legal  in- 
scription. Although  this  Cross  had  not  the  dimensions 
often  given  it  by  Christian  images,2  yet  it  weighed  heavily 
upon  the  Lords  lacerated  shoulders.  Condemned  crimi- 
nals dragged  their  own  gibbets  to  the  place  of  execution,3 

hold  the  .superscription.  The  grotesque  Crucifix  scrawled  in  the  second 
century  upon  the  walls  of  one  of  the  palaces  of  the  Caesars  (Martigny,  Die- 
tionnairea  des  Antiquitis  ecclgsiastiques :  Crucifix),  and  some  passages  in 
tht;  Fathers  (Tertullian,  Adversus  Marcionem,  iii.  22  ;  Paulinus  of  Nola, 
Epistola  xxiv.  ad  Sev.  23)  seem  to  attribute  this  last  form  to  the  Cross  of 
Jesus  ;  but  these  isolated  evidences  are  feeble  witnesses  against  the  mass 
of  traditions  to  the  contrary. 

1  The  antique  couplet  regarding  the  wood  of  the  Holy  Cross  is  well 
known  :  — 

Pes  crucis  est  cedrus,  corpus  tenet  alta  cupressus, 
Palnia  niauus  retiuet,  titulo  laatatur  oliva. 

There  is  a  touching  little  legend  which  tells  that,  for  having  once  borne 
the  body  of  Jesus,  the  aspen-tree  has  since  then  never  had  any  but  pallid 
leaves,  and  in  every  branch  still  continues  to  tremble.  It  would  seem 
most  probable  that  the  Cross  was  made  of  some  wood  easily  found,  strong 
enough  however  to  bear  the  weight  of  a  man.  The  commonest  woods  in 
Palestine  are  the  sycamore,  the  palm,  the  olive,  the  oak,  and  various  kinds 
of  fir-trees  (see  Smith,  Dictionary  of  the  Bible:  Palestine,  Botany). 
It  is  among  these  last  that  we  must  look  for  the  wood  of  the  Holy  Cross. 
M.  Decaisne,  a  member  of  the  Institute,  and  Signor  Pietro  Savi,  Professor 
at  the  University  of  Pisa,  have  shown  from  examinations  with  the  micro- 
scope that  the  pieces  of  the  True  Cross  belonging  to  tin-  I  'athedral  of  Pisa, 
to  the  Duomo  at  Florence,  to  Holy  Cross  at  Jerusalem,  and  to  Notre-Dame 

in  Paris,  are  of  pine-tree-w 1  (genus  Pinus,  of  the  Coniferous  Order). 

(Spe  Rohaut  de  Fleury,  Instruments  de  In  Passion,  Pieces  justificatives, 
]).  359.)  The  preservation  of  the  True  Cross  underground  for  three  cent- 
uries i le  them  at  first  think  it  was  made  of  cedar,  a  wood  much  less 

liable  to  decay  ;  but  now  it  is  asserted  Further  that  pine  nlso  has  lnsted  un- 
injured for  long  periods.  Recent  excavations  in  the  mines  of  Campiglia, 
among  the  aqueducts  and  quays  of  Carthage,  have  brought  to  lighl  woods 
contemporary  with  the  True  Cross  and  belonging  to  the  same  species  of 
Conifera?  ;  they  had  only  suffered  a  slight  alteration  (see  Rohaut  de  Fleury, 
Instruments  de  la  Passion,  p.  53). 

2  It  was  evidently  lifted  only  a  little  way  above  the  ground,  for,  with  a 
spray  of  hyssop  they  could  reach  the  lips  of  the  condemned  and  offer  them 
the  sponge  soaked  in  vinegar.  Moreover,  we  know  that  sometimes  they 
made  an  end  to  the  torture  by  loosing  ferocious  beasts  which  devoured  the 
boilies  of  the  crucified  (Suetonius,  Nero,  29). 

8  "Every  malefactor  carries  his  cross"  (Plutarch,  De  sera  Numinis 
vindicta,  ix.).  ' 


THE   CRUCIFIXION.  321 

and  however  cruel  might  have  been  the  whipping  so  re- 
cently suffered  by  them,  ordinarily  enough  strength  was 
spared  them  to  support  this  load;  but  it  was  not  so  with 
the  Saviour,  now  altogether  exhausted,  after  the  Agony  of 
Gethsemani,  the  sweat  of  blood,  and  the  lashes  at  the  hands 
of  the  lictors. 

All  was  ready ;  the  procession  marched  rapidly  toward 
Golgotha.  Stared  at  by  an  insolent  crowd  of  sightseers, 
Jesus  dragged  that  heavy  badge  of  infamy  across  the 
rough  streets  of  Jerusalem,  and  up  the  road  which  climbs 
Calvarywards.  He  was  all  but  reaching  the  gates  when 
His  powers  failed  Him  , 1  no  gibes  and  curses,  no  blows 
from  pike  and  javelin,  were  spared  to  spur  up  such  unfor- 
tunates as  fell  under  their  burden ; 2  but  they  soon  saw 
that  violence  would  be  useless  here,  —  that  their  Victim 
was  incapable  of  carrying  His  Cross  any  further. 

Just  at  this  juncture  a  man  happened  to  be  entering  the 
town ;  he  was  a  Cyrenean  Jew  3  returning  from  the  coun- 
try. From  his  dress  and  the  provisions  he  had  with  him 
in  readiness  for  the  Pasch  the  soldiers  saw  at  a  glance  that 
he  was  a  stranger  employed  at  servile  labor;  to  their 
minds  this  was  ample  excuse  for  obliging  him  to  perform 
one  of  those  forced  services 4  which  the  caprice  of  the 
legionaries  was  continually  imposing  upon  provincial  in- 
habitants. They  therefore  compelled  him  to  carry  the 
Cross  after  Jesus.5 

This  compulsory  service  rendered  to  the  Saviour  has  suf- 
ficed to  preserve  the  name  of  Simon  the  Cyrenean  from 
oblivion.     Was  he  a  disciple  of  the  Christ  ?     The  Gospel 

1  The  Gospel  does  not  state  explicitly  that  Jesus  had  fallen,  but  the  act 
of  violence  here  inflicted  upon  Simon  the  Cyrenean,  when  they  were  so 
near  to  Calvary  (Matt,  xxvii.  32),  leads  us  to  infer  that  the  Saviour  had 
succumbed  under  the  burden. 

2  Plautus,  Mostellaria,  52-55. 

3  Ptolemy  Lagos,  when  he  withdrew  from  Palestine,  had  transported 
one  hundred  thousand  Jews  to  Cyrenaiica;  they  had  a  synagogue  of  their 
own  at  Jerusalem. 

4  As  to  the  Roman  requisitions,  see  Pauly,  Real  Encyclopadie  ;  Ayyapia, 
Tholuck,  Die  Glaubwiirdigkeit,  365;  Saubert,  Opera  posthuma,  ii.  149; 
De  Angariis  veterum. 

5  Matt,  xxvii.  32. 

VOL.  II  — 21 


322      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

does  not  say  so,  but  Saint  Mark  recalls  that  Simon  was 
father  of  Alexander  and  Rufus,  names  known  among  the 
early  Christians  as  belonging  to  brethren  in  the  faith.1 

But  for  Jesus,  the  soldiers  must  needs  help  Him  to  rise, 
and  even  keep  Him  up  along  the  way  as  far  as  Calvary.8 
At  sight  of  the  Man  of  Sorrows  dragged  to  execution  a 
shudder  of  pity  swept  through  the  throng,  and  a  group  of 
women  who  were  close  to  Jesus  lifted  up  their  voices  in 
cries  of  lamentations,  wailing  and  beating  their  breasts.3 
The  Law  did  indeed  forbid  them  to  render  any  such  tokens 
of  sympathy  and  regret  to  those  about  to  die,  but  the  com- 
passion to  which  they  gave  utterance  upon  beholding  the 
Christ  was  one  of  those  movements  which  no  ordinances 
can  crush  out  altogether. 

Moved  by  the  great  grief  of  these  women,  Jesus  turned 
toward  them,  saying,  — 

"  Daughters  of  Jerusalem,  weep  not  over  Me ;  but  weep 
for  yourselves  and  for  your  children;  for  soon  the  days 
shall  come  when  they  will  say :  '  Blessed  are  the  barren  ! 
Blessed  are  the  wombs  which  have  not  borne,  and  the 
breasts  which  have  not  giveu  suck ! '  Then  shall  they 
begin  to  say  to  the  mountains :  '  Fall  upon  us  !'  and  to  the 
hills  :  '  Cover  us  ! '  For  if  men  deal  thus  with  the  green 
wood,  what  shall  be  done  in  the  dry  ? " 

This  response  could  not  fail  to  surprise  the  women  of 
Jerusalem,  —  its  tone,  so  grave,  so  solemn,  and  well-nigh 
severe,  savoring  not  so  much  of  gratitude  for  their  tears, 
but  sounding  rather  like  an  exhortation  to  penitence. 
Thus  indeed  Jesus  displays  greater  anxiety  for  them  than 
for  Himself;  for  to  these  very  women  the  Prophetic  Voice 
had  once  uttered  those  strange  words  of  Osee  the  son  of 
Beeri :  — 

1  Mark  xv.  21.  We  meet  these  names  again  in  the  Acts  (xix.  33),  in 
the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  (xvi.  13)  in  the  First  Epistle  to  Timothy  (i.  20), 
and  in  the  Second  (iv.  14). 

2  Qtpovaiv  (.Mark  xv.  22),  text  authorized  by  a  majority  of  the  MSS. 
The  lection  Eyovaiv,  which  the  Vulgate  translates  by  "  perducunt  ilium " 
is  given  only  in  Beza's  Codex,  in  the  Latin,  Sahidic,  and  Gothic 
Versions. 

3  Luke  xxiii.  27-31. 


THE   CRUCIFIXION.  323 

*  Give  unto  them,  Lord !  But  what  wilt  thou  give 
them  ?  Give  unto  tlieni  childless  wombs  and  dry  breasts. 
.  .  .  And  they  shall  say  to  the  mountains,  '  Cover  us ; '  and 
to  the  hills,  '  Fall  upon  us.' " 1 

Forty  years  later  these  same  maidens  who  now  heard 
the  words  of  Jesus  were  to  be  enveloped  in  the  desolation 
of  Jerusalem.2  These  young  mothers  were  to  behold  the 
sword  and  the  torch  consume  the  flower  of  the  harvest  of 
Israel ;  the  underground  causeways  of  the  city  incapable  of 
shielding  their  children  against  the  insatiable  rage  of  their 
conquerors ;  the  corpses  of  the  citizens  heaped  therein  by 
thousands  ;  while  in  the  delirium  of  famine  they  themselves 
would  actually  devour  the  offspring  of  their  wombs.3  Need 
we  marvel,  then,  that,  at  beholding  the  swift  approach  of 
such  mighty  woes,  the  Saviour  trembled  for  these  women, 
beseeching  them  to  do  penance  ? 

And  that  He  might  make  them  more  fully  realize  their 
need  thereof  He  borrows  from  the  Holy  Books  that  ex- 
ample of  the  evergreen  tree,  symbol  of  virtue  in  its  in- 
tegrity, whereof  He,  the  Just  One,  is  the  perfect  Archetype. 
Bidding  them  mark  His  torn  and  wounded  body,  and  the 
brand  which  pierced  his  brow, — 

"  If  men  deal  thus  with  the  green  tree,"  He  exclaimed, 
"what  will  they  do  with  the  dry  wood  ?"4 

Bereft  of  His  strength  and  powerless,  Jesus  at  last 
reached  the  place  of  execution.  The  soldiers  offered  Him 
wine  mingled  with  myrrh  and  poppy,5  which  the  Jews  were 

1  Osee  ix.  14,  x.  8. 

2  These  young  women  who  heard  the  Saviour's  words  were  not  over  sixty 
years  old  at  the  time  of  the  taking  of  Jerusalem. 

3  Josephus,  Bellum  Judaicum,  v.  10,  3  ;  vi.  3,  4  ;  9,  4. 

4  Jesus,  when  employing  this  image  doubtless  had  in  mind  that  passage 
from  Ezechiel  :  "Son  of  man,  set  thy  face  against  the  way  of  the  South, 
speak  upon  the  Afric  wind  and  prophecy  unto  the  great  forest  of  the  south- 
ern field,  unto  Jerusalem.  Say  unto  the  Forest  of  the  South  :  Hear  the 
word  of  the  Lord  :  Lo  !  thus  saith  the  Lord  God  :  '  I  will  kindle  a  fire  in 
thee  ;  I  will  burn  all  thy  trees,  the  green  and  the  dry  both  together,  nor 
ever  shalt  thou  be  able  to  quench  the  devouring  flame  '  .  •  .  Alas  !  alas  ! 
alas  !  0  Lord  God  ! "  (Ezechiel  xx.  47,  49.) 

5  Matt,  xxvii.  34  ;  Mark  xv.  23.  S.  Mark  says  that  this  wine  was 
mixed  with  myrrh,  a  potion  which  produced  an  unnatural  state  of  excite- 
ment in  the  body  and  rendered  it  less  sensible  to  pain  (Pliny,  Historia 


324      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESJS. 

accustomed  to  give  to  condemned  criminals,  thereby  pro- 
ducing a  sort  of  lethargy,  and  80  lightening  their  suf- 
ferings.1 Charitable  ladies  of  noble  rank  were  wont  to 
prepare  this  themselves  and  carry  it  to  the  prisoners.2  So, 
complying  with  the  Jewish  usage,  the  soldiers  presented 
this  beverage  to  the  Saviour. 

Jesus,  having  tasted  of  it,  would  not  drink,  but  steeled 
Himself  to  accept  all  the  bitterness  and  hardships  of  His 
execution ;  His  gaze  was  riveted  upon  the  necessary  pre- 
liminaries,—  the  Cross  driven  into  the  ground,  ham- 
mers and  the  nails  got  ready,  ladders  raised  aloft,  cords 
knotted  and  prepared.  And  so,  at  the  nearness  of  His 
hour  of  torment,  though  a  shudder  may  have  shaken  His 
limbs,  His  soul  stood  steadfast  waiting  the  approach  of 
death. 

Finally  the  executioners  seized  Him  and  stripped  Him 
of  His  garments ;  the  Crucified  Captive  must  hang  naked 
upon  the  gibbet.3     The  cords,  when  pulled  up  by  the  sol- 

naturalis,  xiv.  15,  19  ;  iEliun,  Varice  Histories,  xii.  31).  S.  Matthew,  on 
the  contrary,  seems  to  indicate  that  gall  was  poured  into  the  wine.  But 
the  word  x°^V,  translated  by  "gall  "  in  the  Vulgate,  is  borrowed  from  the 
Septuagint,  and  with  them  usually  served  to  translate  the  Hebrew  W)*), 
"the  bitter  and  poisonous  herb,"  which,  aeeording  to  Gesenius  is  poppy 
(Ps.  lxviii.  22;  Jer.  viii.  14).  As  the  juice  of  this  plant  is  a  powerful 
narcotic,  it  is  probably  the  substance  referred  to  by  S.  Matthew  as  x°^Vt 
ami  was  also  mingled  with  myrrh  in  order  to  dull  the  sharpness  of  the 
sufferer's  pangs. 

1  "Si  quis  reus  erat  lapidationis,  attulerunt  ei  vinum  bonum  et  genero- 
sum,  et  bibendum  dederunt  ne  affligeretur  lapidatione.  Ita  faciunt  omni- 
bus qui  per  Synedriuin  ad  mortem  damnantur"  (Midrash  Tanchuma,  39,  3). 
"Oiunes  a  Synedrio  ad  mortem  damnatos  potarunt  vino  vivo  (id  est 
forti),  ut  diriperetur  intellectns  ejus  ad  confirmandum  quod  dicitur  (Prov. 
xxxi.  6)  :  Date  potum  inebriantem  pereunti ;  bibat  et  obliviscatur  infor- 
tunii  sui"  (Bamidbar-Rabba,  10,  f.  2<t(3,  4). 

2  Gemara  of  Babylon,  Sanhedrin,  6,  1. 

3  The  testimony  of  Antiquity  and  the  language  of  the  holy  Fathers 
leads  us  to  helieve  that  the  body  of  Jesus  was  stripped  of  its  clothing 
(Lipsius,  De  Cruce,  ii.  7).  But  there  is  nothing  to  prevent  our  gladly 
availing  ourselves  of  the  hallowed  traditions  of  Christian  art  which 
always  girded  the  tans  of  the  Saviour  (Martigny,  Dictionnaire  des  Anti- 
quitts  chr&iennes .  Crucifix).  The  apocryphal  " Gospel  of  Nicodemus" 
makes  mention  of  a  linen  cincture  wound  around  the  body  of  Jesus,  and 
there  is  nothing  about  this  mark  of  reverence  which  is  incompatible  either 
with  Roman  manners,  or  Jewish  traditions  (Dionysius  of  llalicarnassus, 
i.  80,  vii.  72 ;  Valerius  Maxinms,  ii.  2,  9  ;  Sanhedrin,  vi.  3). 


THE   CRUCIFIXION.  325 

diers,  dragged  His  body 1  up  to  the  spike  protruding  from 
the  middle  of  the  Cross.2  This  piece  of  wood,  which  passed 
under  the  legs  of  the  condemned,  was  strong  enough  to 
hold  him  and  prevent  the  weight  of  the  body  from  tear- 
ing the  hands  from  the  iron  nails.  Transfixed  upon  this 
stool  of  torture,  Jesus  stretched  out  His  arms.  Doubtless 
it  was  necessary  to  bind  the  limbs  to  the  cross-pieces,  in 
order  to  keep  the  feet  and  hands  from  slipping  off  the  nails 
with  which  they  were  pierced.3  First  the  hands  were 
fastened,  the  iron  being  driven  through  the  palm,  or  wrist,4 
Sometimes  the  feet  were  only  bound  with  cords,  but  usually 
the  executioner  nailed  them  to  the  post,  and  this  was  what 
was  done  with  Jesus ;  for  after  the  Eesurrection  we  see 
Him  showing  His  disciples  His  feet  pierced  even  as  Hia 
hands,  while  Tradition,  with  one  accord,  has  applied  to 
Him  the  Psalmist's5  Prophecy:  — 

"They  have  pierced  My  feet  and  My  hands."6 

1  The  prisoner  was  sometimes  nailed  to  the  cross  as  it  lay  on  the  ground, 
and  was  afterwards  raised  aloft  (Ruinart,  A ctes  des  Martyrs,  t.  i.  p.  346  ; 
Eusebius,  Historia  ecclesiastica,  iv.  15).  However,  this  mode  of  crucifying 
appears  to  have  been  quite  exceptional ;  the  evidence  of  the  Fathers  (see 
the  quotations  in  Lipsius,  De  Cruce),  and  the  expressions  employed  by 
profane  authors  in  describing  this  torture,  all  tell  us  that  the  cross  was  set 
up  first,  —  "insultare,  insalire,  ascendere,  subire  in  crucem." 

.2  Christian  art  has  never  reproduced  this  support  or  "sedile."  Never- 
theless it  is  mentioned  and  described  by  the  most  ancient  Fathers,  who 
had  actual  crosses  before  their  eyes  every  day.  "  Ipse  habitus  crucis  fines 
et  summitates  habet  quinque,  duos  in  longitudine,  et  duos  in  latitudine, 
et  unum  in  medio,  in  quo  requiescit  qui  clavis  affigitur"  (S.  Irenreus,  Ad- 
versus  Hccrcscs,  i.  12.  Compare  S.  Justin,  Dialogus  cum  Tryphone,  91; 
Tertullian,  Advcrsus  Nationes,  i.  12).  The  support  set  under  the  feet, 
"suppedaneum,"  spoken  of  by  S.  Gregory,  of  Tours,  and  found  in  some 
ancient  crucifixes,  does  not  seem  to  have  existed  in  the  Roman  Cross 
(Martigny,  Diet  io  mm  ires  des  Anfiqiiitcs  Chretienncs :  Crucifix,  iv.  20). 

3  S.  Hilary,  De  Trinitate,  1.  x.  13;  in  Psalmos,  143;  Pliny,  Historia 
naturalis,  xxviii.  11. 

4  Lucian,  Prometheus,  2. 

5  Ps.  xxi.  17. 

6  The  school  of  Strauss  assumes  that  the  feet  were  merely  tied  to  the 
Cross,  and  thus  they  explain  the  miracle  of  the  Resurrection  on  the  theory 
of  an  apparent  death.  They  have  been  successfully  refuted  by  the  unani- 
mous testimony  of  the  Fathers  and  the  Christian  apologists  who  were  liv- 
ing at  the  time  when  crucifixion  was  still  practised.  S.  Justin  cites  in 
confirmation  the  Acts  of  Pilate  :  "  Foderunt  meas  manus  et  pedes,  nar- 
ratio  erat  clavorum,  qui  in  cruce  manibus  ejus  et  pedibus  infixi  sunt 
.  .  .  Haec  ita  gesta  esse   ex  Actis  sub  Pontio  Pilato  confectis  discern 


326       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

In  that  same  hour  was  accomplished  the  Oracle  ot 
Isaias : 1 — 

"  He  was  numbered  with  transgressors." 

Two  crosses  had  now  been  set  up,  one  on  the  right,  the 
other  on  the  left  of  Jesus,  bearing  two  thieves  condemned 
to  death  with  Him. 

It  only  remained  for  the  soldiers  to  affix,  above  the  head 
of  the  Christ,  the  inscription  dictated  by  Pilate.  Thereon 
were  to  be  read,  in  Hebrew,  in  Greek,  and  in  Latin,  these 
words  :  — 

"This  is  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  King  of  the  Jews."2 

At  this  derisive  title,  and  at  sight  of  the  two  convicts 
ranged  about  the  Christ,  as  though  forming  His  rightful 
court  and  they  His  true  people,  the  Jews  at  once  compre- 
hended the  satire  thus  levelled  against  them.  Too  weak, 
indeed,  to  uphold  his  authority  against  the  excited  multi- 
tude, Pilate  had  regained  at  last  a  glimmer  of  courage,  and 
immediately  cast  about  for  some  occasion  to  avenge  him- 
self; so  when  he  was  handed  the  tablet  designed  to  pub- 
lish the  crime  of  winch  Jesus  was  found  guilty,  he  wrote 
thereon  this  insult  to  the  Jews,  and,  that  it  might  be  bet- 
ter understood,  he  employed  not  only  Latin,  the  official 
language,  but  Greek  as  well,  since  that  was  more  familiar 
to  the  Jews  of  the  Dispersion,  and  also  the  Aramean  dia- 
lect, because  generally  understood  by  the  populace.  And 
furthermore,  as  if  he  feared  that  the  outrage  might  still  not 
be  obvious  enough  to  all  beholders,  he  commanded  that,  on 
either  side  of  Jesus,  two  robbers  should  be  conducted  and 
crucified  with  Him,  —  thereby  showing  the  Jews  plainly  in 

potestis"  (Apologia  i.  35),  and  Tertullian  adds  that  this  piercing  of  the 
hands  and  feet  was  a  torture  peculiar  to  crucifixion  (see  Meyer's  Das  Evan- 
gelium  des  Matthdiis,  xxvii.  35,  where  these  arguments  are  fully  developed). 
The  two  feet  were  not  held  by  a  single  nail,  since  this  would  have  required 
a  spike  of  extraordinary  length,  and  the  bones  would  certainly  have  been 
broken  under  the  blows  (John  xix.  3fi).  Besides  a  passage  from  Plautus 
shows  plainly  that  the  custom  was  to  nail  each  foot  separately  :  — 

Ego  daho  ci  talent  inn  primus  qui  in  crucem  excucurrerit, 
Sed  ea  lege,  ut  affigantur  his  pedes,  his  brachia. 

Mostellaria,  ii.  1,  13. 

1  Is.  Eii.  12. 

2  John  xix.  19-22. 


THE   CRUCIFIXION. 


327 


what  contempt  he  held  both  their  nation  and  their  dreams 
of  royalty.1 

During  the  anxiety  and  rapidity  of  the  march  this  super- 
scription 2  had  not  been  noticed ;  but  hardly  was  it  affixed 
to  the  Cross  before  the  affrout  was  well  understood.  Soon 
the  whole  city  was  aware  of  it;  for  Golgotha  lay  at  the 
gates  of  Jerusalem,  and  crowds  all  day  passed  before  the 
gibbet.  Straightway  the  High-Priests,  laying  aside  their 
preparations  for  the  Pasch,  acted  again  as  the  people's 
spokesmen  and  went  in  search  of  the  Governor. 

They  demanded  that  he  should  change  the  superscrip- 
tion and  write,  not:  "Behold  the  King  of  the  Jews!"  but 
"  Behold  him  who  called  himself  the  king  of  the  Jews  ! " 

"  That  which  is  written  is  written,"  responded  Pilate.  3 

1  S.  John  insinuates  that  the  idea  of  crucifying  the  two  thieves  at  either 
side  of  Jesus  occurred  to  Pilate's  mind,  and  that,  like  the  writing  hung 
upon  the  Cross,  the  object  of  this  action  was  to  humiliate  the  Jews  : 
"E7pai^e  5e  /ecu  t'lt\ov  6  IltXdros. 

2  The  inscription  of  the  Cross  is  different  in  each  of  the  Evangelists. 
S.  Mark  probably  gives  the  Latin  form  ;  S.  Luke,  the  Greek  ;  S.  John, 
the  Aramean  :  — 


Ovros  etTTiv  o  /3a<ri\et/s  tcov  lovdamv. 
Rex  Judseorum. 


8  "  Proconsulis  tabella  sententia  est,  quae,  semel  lecta,  neque  augeri 
littera  una  neque  minui  potest,  sed  utcumque  recitata,  ita  provincise  in- 
strument refertur  "  (Apuleius,  Florida,  i.). 


CHAPTER    VI. 

DEATH  OF  JESUS. 

John  xix.  23-30  ;  Matt,  xxvii.  33,  35,  39-50  ;  Mark  xv.  24,  29-37  ;  Luke 
xxiii.  34-37,  39-46. 

The  soldiers  had  finished  their  work  of  fastening  Jesus 
to  the  Cross ;  the  last  spike  had  been  driven  through  His 
limbs.  Thereupon  the  Saviour's  first  thought  was  to  plead 
for  them. 

"  Father,  forgive  them,"  He  said,  "  for  they  know  not 
what  they  do." 1 

Touching  words,  yet  scarcely  heard  by  those  ruffianly 
soldiers ;  for  other  cares  already  absorbed  their  attention. 
Since  the  Eoman  law  allowed  them  such  spoils  as  they 
could  take  from  the  prisoner's  person,2  they  now  proceeded 
to  share  among  themselves  the  tunic  and  mantle  of  Jesus. 
The  latter  garment,  being  made  of  many  pieces,  was  quickly 
separated  into  four  equal  shares ;  but  the  tunic  was  with- 
out seam,  "  and,  from  top  to  bottom,  of  the  same  weft ; "  3 
to  divide  it  would  have  been  to  destroy  its  value. 

"  Let  us  not  cut  it,"  said  the  soldiers,  "  but  cast  lots  for 
it,  whose  it  shall  be." 

1  Luke  xxiii.  34. 

2  John  xix.  23,  24.  "  Spolia  sunt  quibus  indutus  est,  cum  quis  ad 
Bupplieium  ducitur"  (Ulpian,  Digest,  xlviii.,  xx.  6;  S.  John  Chrysos- 
tom,  in  Joannem,  xix.  33  ;  S.  Cyril  of  Alexandria,  in  Joannem,  xii. ). 

3  The  tunic  which  the  Jews  ordinarily  wore  was  composed  of  two  pieces 
of  cloth  sewn  together  at  the  sides  (Josephus,  Antiquitates,  iii.  7,  4).  The 
priests  alone  wore  long,  seamless  robes  made  of  line  linen  (Ex.  xxviii.  4, 
32,  39;  Josephus,  Antiquitates,  iii.  7,  4;  Pesachim,  f.  85,  1).  Here  too 
Ewald  sees  a  proof  that  Jesus  belonged  to  a  Levite  family.  Is  it  not  more 
fitting  to  suppose,  while  still  respecting  the  formal  evidence  of  the  gen- 
ealogies, that  some  loving  hands,  either  Mary's  or  those  of  the  holy 
women,  had  spun  and  woven  this  precious  garment  ? 


DEATH  OF  JESUS.  329 

And  so  they  appealed  to  chance  lor  a  decision  who  was 
to  wear  the  Christ's  robe. 

"  This,"  says  Saint  John,  "  was  in  fulfilment  of  those 
prophetic  words :  '  They  have  parted  My  garments  among 
them,  upon  My  robe  they  have  cast  lots.' " l 

Now  when  all  was  settled,  the  soldiers  seated  them- 
selves at  the  foot  of  the  Cross  and  kept  guard,  lest  any 
one  should  try  to  remove  the  bodies  of  the  crucified  before 
they  expired.2 

Generally,  when  upon  the  scaffold,  criminals  are  given 
some  last  tokens  of  pity  and  respect.  Jesus  had  not  even 
this  consolation.  His  enemies,  after  being  so  long  balked 
of  their  prey  while  He  was  protected  by  the  Pretorium, 
now  crowded  about  the  Cross  and  revenged  themselves  by 
loading  Him  with  vile  jeers  and  hideous  abuse.  Foremost 
in  the  ranks  of  the  rabble  were  those  lying  witnesses  pro- 
duced by  the  Sanhedrin  the  night  before.  They  passed 
and  repassed  continually  before  the  gibbet,  wagging  their 
heads3  in  token  of  contempt,  blaspheming,  and  reminding 
the  Christ  of  the  calumnies  to  which  He  had  fallen  a 
Victim :  — 

"  Bah  ! 4  you  who  would  destroy  the  Temple  of  God  and 
rebuild  it  in  three  days,  come,  save  yourself  and  descend 
from  the  cross  ! " 

Others  hurled  at  Jesus  the  self-same  challenge  which 
He  had  once  heard  in  the  clays  of  His  first  Temptation  :  — 

"  If  you  are  the  Son  of  God,  come  down  from  the 
cross ! "  5 

However,  the  multitude  still  stood  motionless,6  regarding 

1  Ps.  xxi.  19. 

2  Four  soldiers  remained  upon  Calvary,  because  every  Roman  watch 
was  composed  of  this  number  of  legionaries  (Lipsius,  De  Cruce,  ii.  16; 
Origen,  in  Matthceum,  iii.  4">). 

3  Mark  xv.  29,  30.  To  shake  the  head  is  always  taken  in  the  Scrip- 
tures to  be  an  expression  of  sarcasm,  malignant  glee,  and  cruel  satisfaction 
(Is.  xxxvii.  22  ;  Ps.  xxi.  8  ;  Job  xvi.  5  ;  Lam.  ii.  15). 

4  Oi)d  is  here  an  ironical  exclamation,  for  ordinarily  it  was  used  to  tes- 
tify one's  reverence  and  admiration  (Dionysius  Cassius,  lxiii.  20  ;  Epicte- 
tus,  Dissertationes,  lib.  iii.  22,  etc.). 

5  Matt,  xxvii.  40. 

6  ElffTT/Kei  6  Xaos  6ewpui>'  i&p.vKT-qpi{ov  5t  vl  dp-^ovres  (Luke  xxiii.  35). 


330       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

the  Saviour  with  more  of  curiosity  than  hatred.  This 
sileuce  irritated  the  Sanhedrin  party,  for  in  the  mean- 
while even  such  neutrality  might  be  enough  to  allow  the 
voice  of  justice  to  become  audible  in  the  depth  of  the  peo- 
ple's heart.  Accordingly  we  soon  see  these  princes  of 
[srael  taking  part  in  the  clamor,  along  with  their  slaves 
and  menials.1  There  were  the  same  taunting  invectives, 
the  same  senseless  fury,  with  nothing  but  their  more 
spiteful  arrogance  to  distinguish  them  from  the  poorer 
mob.  They  disdained  even  to  turn  toward  the  Christ  and 
insult  Him  to  His  face,  but,  gathering  together,  priests, 
Scribes,  aud  Ancients  scoffed  and  jeered  among  themselves 
at  His  speechless  agony.2  Not  daring  to  deny,  in  presence 
of  the  people,  the  miracles  of  the  Galilean,  they  tried  to 
blacken  their  renown,  by  contrasting  them  with  the  power- 
lessness  to  which  He  was  now  publicly  reduced. 

"  He  saved  others,"  they  sneered,  "  but  he  cannot  save 
himself!" 

Then,  lifting  their  eyes  toward  the  superscription,  whose 
humiliating  irony  was  Pilate's  most  offensive  thrust, 

"Let  'the  Christ,' "  they  cried,  "'the  King  of  Israel,' 
forthwith  descend  from  his  cross,  in  order  that  we  may  see 
him  and  that  we  may  believe  in  him !" 

That  title  of  "the  Christ"  brought  back  to  the  mind  of 
Jesus  all  the  last  night's  trial,  the  scene  before  the  king, 
the  struggles  from  which  Pilate  had  retired  vanquished, 
Himself  stripped  and  scourged,  then  the  long  road  to 
execution.  Still  their  rage  waxed  fiercer ;  now  it  even 
ventured  to  attack  the  love  which  Jesus  bore  His  Father 
and,  in  its  blasphemy,  dared  to  defy  the  Almighty. 

"  He  put  his  trust  in  God  ;  so  if  God  loves  him  3  let  Him 
deliver  him,  for  lie  said  :  '  I  am  the  Son  of  God.' " 

Nothing  could  check  this  fresh  outburst  of  obloquy ;  in 
a  short  time  the  contagion  spread  through  the  masses,4 

1  'Ofxotws  kclI  ol  apxiepels  (Mark  xv.  31). 

2  Mark  xv.  31,  32. 

3  9A«  avrop  (Matt,  xxvii.  43)  is  the  translation  of  the  Hebrew 
13  fan,  "  if  he  is  the  object  of  His  love." 

4  In  S.  Luke  (xxiii.  35)  the  Received  Text,  after  &[>xovTts  places  obv 
avrots,  thus  indicating  that  the  people,  excited  by  the  example  of  the 


DEATH  OF  JESUS.  331 

until  the  soldiers  themselves  had  caught  the  spirit.  These 
fellows,  now  standing  before  Him,  held  up  with  mock 
sympathy  the  wine  cup l  from  which  they  had  been 
drinking  among  themselves,  and  shouted  at  Jesus,  with 
the  crowd :  — 

"  If  you  are  the  king  of  the  Jews,  now  save  yourself! " 

And  yet  the  insulting  tumult  had  not  reached  its  cul- 
minating point.  Jesus  had  been  given  companions  in  His 
sufferings,  and  He  now  beheld  even  these  fellows  turn 
against  Him,  and  from  those  crosses,  set  up  at  His  either 
hand,  He  heard  this  blasphemy  reechoed:  — 

"  If  you  are  the  Christ,  save  yourself,  save  us  ! "  2 

But  only  one  of  the  robbers  had  spoken  ;  the  other  gazed 
upon  the  Saviour,  filled  with  admiration  at  His  patient 
fortitude,  and  feeling  his  own  heart  drawn  toward  Him. 
So  when  he  heard  his  comrade  scoff,  he  rebuked  him, 
saying :  — ■ 

"  You  have  no  fear  of  God,  although  you  are  condemned 
to  the  same  sentence !  Yet  for  us,  this  is  only  justice, 
since  we  suffer  pains  we  have  merited,  but  this  man  here 
has  done  no  evil." 

Then,  his  faith  springing  up  as  if  in  quick  response  to 
his  own  testimony  :  — 

"  Lord,"  he  exclaimed, "  when  Thou  shalt  come  into  Thy 
Kingdom,  remember  me  ! " 

Never  did  grace  so  suddenly  transform  a  criminal  into 
a  martyr,  but  surely  never  was  confession  of  faith  more 
meritorious,  for  it  was  in  the  very  hour  when,  deserted 
and    betrayed    by   all,    Jesus    hung    in   death   upon   the 

Sanhedrin-Councillors,  took  part  in  their  insults.  This  reading  has  the 
authority  of  the  Alexandrian  MS.,  the  Latin  Versions,  and  the  Cureton 
Syriac. 

1  By  #£os  here  Maldonatus  understands  the  vinegar  which  the  execu- 
tioners carried  to  the  place  of  torture,  in  order  to  revive  the  condemned 
when  they  fainted  beneath  the  extremity  of  their  pains  ;  hut  at  this  junc- 
ture the  soldiers  certainly  had  no  such  intention,  for  later  on  we  see  that 
their  arms  could  not  reach  the  lips  of  Jesus  (Matt,  xxvii.  48)  ;  so  the  cup 
which  they  offered  the  Saviour  out  of  derision  contained,  to  all  appearances, 
that  heavy  wine  usually  drunk  by  them,  which  in  some  authors  is  desig- 
nated by  the  term  vinegar  (Vegetius,  De  Re  militari,  iv.  7,  etc.). 

2  Luke  xxiii.  39-43. 


332      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

tree,  that  the  good  thief  paid  homage  to  His  Kingliness 
Divine. 

At  this  moment  the  Saviour  could  not  make  the  slight- 
est movement  without  intensifying  Ills  own  anguish  ;  yet, 
as  He  heard  this  prayer,  He  bent  His  head  toward  His 
companion  and  said:  — 

"  I  tell  thee  that,  of  a  truth,  to-day  thou  shalt  be  with 
Me  in  Paradise."1 

The  humble  penitent  had  only  begged  a  place  in  His 
memory,  and  lo,  this  rich  boon  is  granted  him,  —  even  the 
blessedness  of  God's  Presence.  He  had  been  contented 
with  a  ray  of  hope,  but  from  this  same  day  a  never-ending 
happiness  had  become  his  portion.  Saint  Matthew  and 
Saint  Mark  seem  not  to  have  been  aware  of  this  episode,  as 
recorded  in  the  Third  Gospel,  for  they  only  speak  in  vague 
terms  of  blasphemies  having  been  uttered  hy  the  two 
brigands.  We  know  how  much  Saint  Luke  was  indebted 
to  Mary  ;2  doubtless  it  was  from  her  lips  he  learned  these 
words  which  passed  from  one  to  the  other  of  those  high 
crosses,  only  overheard  by  the  Mother  who  stood  so  stead- 
fastly beneath  the  gibbet  of  her  expiring  Son.3 

1  The  Scribes  had  come  to  use  the  word  Eden,  the  Paradise  of  the 
world's  first  days  (Genesis  ii.  15),  in  too  material  a  sense  to  allow  of  Jesus 
employing  this  word  when  He  was  speaking  of  Heaven.  He  required  some 
term  as  new  as  the  happiness  which  He  promised  ;  that  eternal  felicity 
which  is  found  in  the  Saviour's  doctrine  is  the  "  Kingdom  of  Heaven,"  "the 
Kingdom  of  God."  Once  only,  wishing  to  depict  the  abode  where  right- 
eous souls  await  the  Resurrection,  He  shows  Lazarus  resting  on  Abraham's 
bosom  ;  this  thought  of  reposing  upon  the  breast  of  the  Father  of  all  true 
believers  was  the  noblest  of  all  the  figures  employed  by  the  Scribes  to  de- 
scribe the  joys  of  the  future  life.  If  here  He  speaks  openly  of  Paradise  it 
is  because,  for  the  wretched  sufferer  at  His  side,  this  word  could  only  mean 
what  it  does  to  us,  a  vision  of  far-off  Heaven.  The  word  llapadeieos, 
used  by  tin'  Septuagint  to  translate  the  Garden  of  Eden,  appears  to  have 
been  borrowed  from  the  Persian  language:  ParadaSza,  "an  enclosure,  a 
region  encircled  with  walls,"  from  para-dih,  "to  raise  a  ditch  or  wall 
about  anything."  This  word  has  been  introduced  into  the  Greek  tongue 
by  Xenophon  in  passages  where  it  refers  to  a  pleasaunce-garden  or  hunt- 
ing-park (CEcononiicus,  iv.  14  ;  Anabasis,  i.  11,  7  ;  Hcllenica,  iv.  1,  15). 

2  Patrizi,  De  Evangeliis,  lib.  i.,  cap.  iii.,  qusestio  iv.  58. 

8  In  order  to  harmonize  S.  Luke's  story  with  that  of  the  other  two 
Synoptic  Writers  the  Greek  Fathers  suppose  that  at  first  both  robbers 
blasphemed  Jesus,  when  on  a  sudden  one  of  them  was  converted,  and  used 
the  language  recorded  by  S.  Luke.     Sharing  their  opinion  Lange  sees  a 


DEATH  OF  JESUS.  333 

Meanwhile  the  storm  of  passion  which  His  foes  had 
raised  around  the  silent  Christ  had  grown  less  violent; 
though  now  and  then  the  uproar  would  swell,  as  it  was 
caught  up  again  by  the  populace,  renewed  shouts  bursting 
forth  here  and  there.  But  by  this  time  a  mass  of  dank 
and  murky  vapors,  which  had  been  rising  over  the  earth, 
began  to  mount  upward  toward  the  Cross,  enveloping  it 
as  in  a  funeral  pall.1  Terror  speedily  thinned  the  ranks 
of  the  throng  ;  soon  the  space  encircling  the  three  crosses 
was  left  bare,  and  a  little  group  drew  nearer;  it  numbered 
only  three  women,  with  one  of  the  disciples.  There  was 
the  Blessed  Virgin  with  her  sister  Mary,  Cleophas'  wife ; 2 
close  beside  them  was  Magdalene,  the  sinner,  while  John 
followed  in  their  footsteps.  His  name  indeed  is  not  in- 
scribed here  in  the  inspired  history,  but  everything  betrays 
his  presence,  —  not  only  the  reticence  he  shows  in  mention- 
ing his  own  part  therein,  but  even  this  very  position  be- 

great  difference  between  the  dweiSifrp  (Matt,  xxvii.  44  ;  Mark  xv.  32)  of 
the  two  thieves  and  the  blasphemy  of  the  hardened  criminal  (Luke  xxiii. 
39).  These  distinctions  are  exceedingly  subtile,  and  such  a  speedy  conver- 
sion, where  the  utterances  of  unbounded  faith  and  love  follow  immediately 
upon  insults,  would  seem  far  from  probable.  S.  Augustine  (De  Consensu 
Evangclistarum,  iii.  53)  regards  the  terms  employed  by  SS.  Matthew  and 
Mark  as  only  a  vague  and  general  expression. 

1  Mark  xv.  33. 

2  Ei<TTriK€Laav  irapa.  rw  aravpu  rod  'Irjcrov  'q  p.-i)Tr)p  avrov,  /ecu  i]  dSe\(prj  rrfi 
/j.7]Tpbs  avrov,  Mapid/x  17  rod  KXwnd  Kal  Mapid/x  77  MaydaX-qvrj  (John  xix. 
25).  Is  the  sister  of  the  Holy  Virgin  the  same  person  as  the  wife  of 
Cleophas,  or  did  S.  John  mean  to  state  that  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross,  stand- 
ing at  one  side,  were  Mary  and  her  sister,  and  at  the  other,  Mary,  wife  of 
Cleophas,  with  the  Magdalene  '?  Wieseler,  Liicke,  and  Ewald  uphold  this 
hypothesis  ;  but  the  commoner  opinion  makes  Mary,  wife  of  Cleophas,  the 
Blessed  Virgin's  sister ;  for  it  seems  hardly  likely  that  in  a  passage  where 
the  details  are  all  so  extremely  precise  S.  John  would  have  been  content 
to  use  this  expression,  "  Mary's  sister,"  without  mentioning  this  woman 
by  name.  If  his  intention  had  been  to  distinguish  r]  dSe\(prj  from  Mapidp. 
he  would  have  placed  a  Kal  between  ttJs  p^rpo?  avrov  and  Mapidp.  in  order 
to  continue  the  enumeration  and  prevent  any  uncertainty  ;  this  the  Greek 
construction  would  have  demanded,  and  we  know  too  how  fond  S.  John 
was  of  multiplying  conjunctions  ;  now  the  Peshito  is  the  only  one  to  give 
this  Kal.  Moreover,  a  comparison  of  this  passage  with  the  texts  in  S.  Mat- 
thew (xxvii.  56)  and  S.  Mark  (xx.  40)  is  enough  to  make  us  conclude, 
with  Tradition,  — ■  as  we  have  said  already,  —  that  the  Blessed  Virgin  had 
a  sister  named,  like  herself,  Mary,  and  that  she  was  the  wife  of  Cleophas, 
and  mother  of  James  the  Less  and  Joses ;  it  is  of  her  that  S.  John  is 
speaking  here. 


334      THE  PASSION  J  \7>  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

side  his  Lord,  whither  the  Beloved  Disciple  could   not 
have   failed   to   find    his   way. 

Face  to  face  with  the  Cross,  Lhcy  hailed,  transfixed,  their 
gaze  riveted  upon  Him  Whom  they  loved.  And  Jesus, 
after  having  first  remembered  His  torturers  only  to  forgive 
them  their  share  in  His  sufferings,  after  remembering  the 
companion  of  His  anguish,  that  so  He  might  open  to  him 
the  heavenly  gates,  —  Jesus  at  length  allowed  His  eyes  to 
fall  upon  His  own  friends,  who  came  to  ask  one  last  fare- 
well; and  looking,  He  beheld  His  Mother  pierced  with  the 
sword  whereof  the  aged  Simeon  had  years  ago  forewarned 
her. 

The  tenderest  of  all  the  Chureh's  hymns,  our  Stahat 
Mater,  does  but  feebly  express  the  poignant  grief  within 
her  Mother's  heart  at  such  a  woful  spectacle.  Better  than 
any  one  else  Jesus  realized  what  it  meant  for  her:  it  was 
death  He  beheld  drawing  down  upon  Himself,  but  for  His 
Mother  He  could  see  only  present  grief  and  future  loneli- 
ness. Of  all  His  Apostles,  John  alone  remained  by  Him, 
and,  growing  more  faithful  in  proportion  as  the  danger 
increased,  he  now  stood  close  at  her  side,  protecting  Mary. 

Careful  not  to  utter  her  name,  fearing  lest  He  might  ex- 
pose her  to  insults  by  revealing  who  she  was,  Jesus  said, 
gently,  — 

"  Woman,  behold  thy  son  ! " 

And  then  to  John,  — 

"  Behold  thy  Mother ! " 

From  that  moment  the  disciple  received  Mary  into  his 
dwelling1  and  regarded  her  as  his  Mother. 

This  last  link  binding  him  to  earth  now  broken,  Jesus 
cast  Himself  upon  God's  Bosom,  that  so  His  Passion  might 
be  consummated.  It  was  noonday  when  the  first  shades 
crept  round  about  Golgotha ; 2  thereafter  they  had  still 
continued  to  float  upwards,  shrouding  Jerusalem,  Judea, 

1  Efr  ret  iSia  :  "  Id  est  in  dnmnm  suam,  non  in  domum  quam  propriam 
possideret  (omnia  enira  Apostoli  pro  Christo  reliquerant),  sed  in  domo 
in  qua  habitabat  "  (Corluy,  Oommentarius  in  Evamjelium  Joannis, 
p.  423). 

2  Matt,  xxvii.  45. 


DEATH  OF  .IKS US.  335 

and  the  entire  world1  in  a  black  winding-sheet.  No  natu- 
ral cause  could  be  sufficient  to  account  for  this  phenomenon, 
for  the  moon,  just  now  at  the  full,  rendered  an  eclipse  of 
the  sun  impossible,  But  the  ground  is  wont  to  be  swathed 
in  murky  vapors  at  the  approach  of  earthquakes,  which 
tear  asunder  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  and  now  the  world 
was  wrapped  in  the  trappings  of  woe,  to  bemoan  the  suffer- 
ings of  its  God.2  The  Cross,  whereon  the  Christ  hung  in 
death,  was  hidden  in  a  thick,  black  cloud ;  all  human  noises 
were  hushed  and  died  away,  and  the  cry  which  antiquity 
has  put  into  the  mouth  of  Dionysius  the  Areopagite 
expresses  that  mighty  fear  which  shook  the  souls  of  men  : 

"  Either  the  Divinity  suffers,  or  He  is  moved  to  pity  at 
some  great  woe  ! "  3 

in  this  death  of  the  Cross  the  torture  grew  each  in- 
stant more  unendurable ;  the  lacerated  feet  and  hands, 
the  shattered  body,  wrenched  so  violently  apart,  the  in- 
voluntary contraction  of  the  muscles,  the  thirst,  the  de- 
lirium of  fever,  —  everything  intensified  each  separate  pang 
to  such  a  point  that  the  crucified  criminal  cried  upon  death 
as  a  deliverer.4 

Thus,  during  three  hours  Jesus  battled  without  uttering 
a  single  complaint.  What  took  place  in  the  midst  of  those 
impenetrable  shades  ?  The  Evangelists,  who  have  described 
the  Agony  in  the  garden,  are  silent  concerning  this  of  the 

1  'EttI  irao-av  tt)v  y9jv  (Matt,  xxvii.  45).  We  are  to  understand  by  these 
words  that  the  darkness  covered  Judea  at  least,  and  probably  our  whole 
hemisphere. 

2  This  marvel  had  amazed,  the  Pagans  themselves.  Tertullian  appeals 
to  their  public  archives  in  witness  thereof  :  "  Eum  mundi  casum  relatum  in 
arcanis  (alia,?  archivis)  vestris  liabetis"  (Apologelicm,  xxi. ).  The  evidence 
of  Phlego,  often  invoked  by  the  early  Fathers,  seems  less  certain,  for  if  we 
take  the  calculations  of  the  best  chronologists  (Ideler,  Handbuch,  ii.  s.  419  ; 
Wieseler,  Chronologische  Synapse,  s.  588)  Hadrian's  freedman  is  speaking 
of  an  eclipse  which  took  place  two  years  previously  ;  but  the  fact  remains 
no  less  certain  that  in  the  time  of  Origen  the  event  was  considered  cpiite 
incontestable,  some  regarding  it  as  a  supernatural  phenomenon,  others  as 
an  eclipse  (see  in  Migne,  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  x.,  p.  99,  the  testimony  of 
Julius  Africanus  and  Origen,  Contra  Ccls/nn,  ii.  33). 

8  Dionysius  the  Areopagite,  Epistola,  vii.  ;  Migne,  Patrologie  grecque, 
t.  iii.  See  his  life  also  :  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  iv.,  p.  698,  and  the  Scholia  of 
S.  Maximus,  t.  iv.,  p.  536. 

4  Cicero,  Verrince,  ii.  45. 


336      TUE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Cross.     Yet  in  the  end  a  great  cry  pierced  the  gloom,  re- 
vealing  the   mystery   of  these   hours   of  anguish.      Saint 
Murk  has  preserved  these  words  just  as  they  came  from 
the  lips  of  Jesus,  in  that  familiar  Aramean  tongue  which 
as  a  child  lie  had  learned  at  Mary's  knee  :  — 
"Eloi!  Eloi!1     Lamma  sabachthani ? " 
"  My  God  !2   My  God  !  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  Me  ?  " 
This  lament  is  the  opening  of  the  Psalm  wherein  the 
Messiah's  Passion  is  all  predicted,3  —  His  strength  ebbing 
away  in  streams  of  blood,  His  burning  wounds  and  that 
parching  thirst  of  whose  tiereeness  the  dying  man  alone 
has  any  knowledge.     But  what  were  those  bodily  torments 
compared   with    the    sufferings   which   racked   His   soul  ? 
Indeed  it  was  a  mental  agony  which  found  an  utterance 
in  that  cry  of  distress,  — 

"  My  God !  Why  hast  Thou  forsaken  Me  ? " 
Yet  never  did  any  dying  soul  feel  as  Jesus  felt  when 
now  forsaken  by  God,  because  none  but  He  alone  has  ever 
lived  with  God  and  in  God.  Hanging  there,  reviled  by 
earth  and  rejected  by  Heaven,  He  lingered  in  lonely  con- 
flict with  another  Agony  like  that  which  passed  over  Him  in 
Gethsemani ;  yet  this  time  He  drained  the  cup  to  the  very 
dregs.  To  gather  any  faint  idea  of  the  wretchedness  which 
seized  Him  in  His  present  abandonment,  we  must  remem- 
ber that  despite  His  own  innocence,  Jesus,  when  upon  the 
Cross,  bore  the  actual  load  of  our  crimes,  —  that  he  act- 
ually had  taken  upon  Himself  the  wickedness  of  the  world. 
And  now  that  God  had  transferred  to  Him  all  sins  com- 
mitted from  the  beginning  unto  the  end  of  time,  these  all 
stood  forth  distinctly  before  His  dying  eyes,  together  with 
their  very  least  circumstances.  Every  treacherous  and 
revengeful  deed,  the  lewd  and  adulterous  works  of  shame, 

1  SS.  Matthew  and  Mark  agree  in  putting  into  the  mouth  of  Jesus,  not 
the  Hebrew  word  "'jrOTJ.',  which  we  read  at  the  beginning  of  Psalm  xxi., 
but  the  Aramean  term  "^flp?^-  From  this  we  may  conclude  that  S. 
Matthew  wanted  to  preserve  these  first  words  of  the  Psalm:  "Eli,  Eli," 
but  that  really  Jesus  made  use  of  the  Aramean  tongue. 

2  0e^  (Matt,  xxvii.  46)  is  a  rare  form.  S.  Mark  (xv.  34)  has  kept  the 
ordinary  vocative  :  6  Qtos. 

8Ps.  xxi.  2,  15,  16. 


DEATH  OF  JESUS.  337 

blasphemies,  slanders,  and  lying,  —  all  together  surged 
their  foul  floods  into  His  Soul,  and  every  other  sense  was 
swallowed  up  under  these  torrents  of  iniquity.  And  it 
was  in  this  same  hour  wherein  the  Christ  was,  as  it  were, 
overwhelmed  in  that  first  wild  onslaught,  that  God  saw  fit 
to  withdraw  His  Presence  from  Him,  as  if  to  crush  Him 
beneath  the  weight  of  His  vengeance.  Jesus,  "  having 
become  sin  for  our  sake,"  being  made  "  a  curse  and  an  exe- 
cration " l  (according  to  Saint  Paul's  expression),  Jesus 
suffered  at  the  hand  of  God  such  unutterable  horror  as  no 
human  tongue  can  declare.  In  that  hour  Heaven  drew 
away  from  Him  into  the  darkness  ;  Hell  alone  remained 
before  the  Saviour's  sight,  —  wherein  was  disclosed  that 
never-ending  despair,  eternal,  infinite,  even  as  is  the  God 
whose  penalty  it  is. 

One  lowermost  depth  of  sorrow  had  still  to  be  reached  ; 
it  was  the  knowledge  of  how  scanty  was  the  number  of 
souls  who  should  profit  by  His  Passion.  The  multitude  of 
the  damned  were  all  marshalled  before  His  eyes  ;  however 
unworthy,  they  were  the  members  of  His  mystical  Body, 
so  closely  united  to  Him  that  they  could  not  be  separated 
from  Him  without  violence.  And  as  He  saw  this  dearly 
loved  portion  of  Himself  about  to  be  wrested  from  Him, 
Jesus  felt  that  He  indeed,  like  them,  was  left  destitute  and 
reprobate  forever. 

"  He  mourned,"  says  Arnaud  de  Chartres,2  "  that  the 
fruit  of  His  struggles  should  be  torn  from  Him ;  He  cried 
aloud  that  His  sweat,  His  toils,  and  His  death,  were  thus 
bereft  of  their  reward ;  since  those  for  whom  He  had  suf- 
fered so  much  were  abandoned  to  everlasting  perdition." 
This,  then,  was  what  wrung  from  Him  that  mournful  cry  : 

"  My  God  !  My  God  !  dost  Thou  abandon  Me  ?  " 

But  how  can  we  make  this  moment  of  apparent  despair 
to  which  Jesus  yielded  harmonize  with  the  blessedness 
essential  to  His  divine  personality  ?     Herein  again  there  is 

1  Gal.  iii.  13. 

2  "  Subtracta  sibi  agonum  suorum  stipendia  Christus  queritur,  protes- 
tans  non  esse  qusestuosus  tanti  discriminis  sudores,  si  hi  quibus  tanti 
laboris  impensa  est  opera,  sic  derelinquautur." 

vol.  ii.  —  22 


3o8      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

involved  an  unfathomable  mystery,  the  Mystery  of  the 
Incarnation.  To  comprehend  how  the  Sun  of  God  could 
speak  of  Himself  as  forsaken  by  His  Father,  we  should 
first  need  to  explain  how  the  Infinite  Being  could  take 
upon  Himself  a  finite  nature  ;  for  between  these  two  humil- 
iations there  is  only  a  difference  of  degree,  —  the  abandon- 
ment of  Jesus  upon  the  Cross  only  continued  what  was 
first  accomplished  in  the  Incarnation,  and  in  these  two 
Mysteries  the  Godhead  remains  equally  inviolable.  With 
the  Christ  in  His  anguish  it  was  even  as  with  those  moun- 
tain chains  whose  white  crests  pierce  the  clouds.  Often  the 
tempests  do  havoc  with  their  rugged  sides,  strewing  them 
with  the  wreckage  of  the  storm ;  yet  naught  can  trouble 
the  snowy  peaks,  which,  far,  far  above  the  whirlwind's 
reach,  stand  evermore  serene  and  crowned  with  light. 

In  that  same  hour,  the  darkness  disappearing,  and  with 
it  the  mists  of  fear,  forthwith  the  Jews  found  courage  to 
reecho  those  words  of  Jesus,  —  feigning  to  mistake  the 
divine  Name  of  Eli  for  that  of  the  Prophet.1 

"  He  is  calling  upon  Elias,"  they  said. 

Yet  even  by  this  jibe  they  confessed  to  the  throes  of  terror 
they  had  just  felt ;  for  all  Israel  knew  that  the  awful  Seer 
was  to  reappear  upon  a  day  of  terror  and  blazing  fire, 
beneath  cloud-hung  skies  and  a  moon  like  blood,  when  all 
the  heavenly  powers  would  tremble  in  their  spheres. 

All  at  once  another  cry  was  heard. 

"I  thirst,"2  Jesus  said,  giving  tongue  to  the  most  ex- 
cruciating pangs  of  crucifixion.3 

1  Mark  xv.  35.  It  is  impossible  to  admit  that  this  mistake  was  made, 
not  by  Jews,  hut  by  the  Roman  soldiery,  for  the  latter  did  not  understand 
Hebrew  at  all,  and  had  little  knowledge  of  any  Prophets.  Moreover,  as 
the  Dame  of  Elias,  under  its  Aramean  form  Elijahu,  is  entirely  different 
from  tin-  word  Eloi,  "God,"  it  is  equally  hard  to  believe  that  the  Jews 
could  possihly  have  been  deceived  by  the  words  of  Jesus.  Consequently 
this  was  only  another  piece  of  satanic  raillery,  showing  their  desire  to 
turn  into  derision  this  prayer  which  the  Saviour  borrowed  from  the  Sacred 
Books. 

2  John  xix.  28,  29.  S.  John  calls  to  mind  that  this  thirst  and  the  vine- 
gar offered  to  Jesus  had  been  foretold  in  1'salin  lxviii.,  verse  23:  "They 
gave  Me  gall  for  My  meat,  and  in  My  thirst  they  gave  Me  vinegar  to  drink. '* 

3  An  Arabian  writer,  As-Sujuti  has  given  a  description  of  the  sufferings 
of  a  young  Turk  crucified  at  Damascus  in  1247  :  "  Worst  of  all  his  sutler- 


DEATH  OF  JESUS.  33(J 

One  of  the  bystanders  hurriedly  dipped  a  sponge  *  into 
the  soldiers'  bitter  drink  2  and  offered  it  to  the  Saviour ; 
and  as  his  arm  could  not  reach  so  high  as  the  head  of  the 
Sufferer,  he  took  a  reed,3  set  the  sponge  upon  the  end 
of  its  stem,  and  put  it  to  the  lips  of  the  Christ.  His 
deed  of  mercy  drew  forth  a  shriek  of  hatred  from  the 
mob:  — 

"  Let  be !  Let  be !  and  see  if  Elias  will  come  to  save 
him  ! " 

"  Let  me  alone,"  said  the  man  ;  "  we  shall  see,  all  the 
same,  whether  Elias  will  save  him."4 

The  Saviour  pressed  His  lips  to  the  sponge  soaked  with 
vinegar ;  then,  with  quickened  powers,  He  fixed  His  gaze 
upon  the  world  of  men  below  Him.  In  a  trice  His  glance 
swept  the  whole  duration  of  time  and  all  His  Work.  He 
beheld  the  righteous  who  had  gone  before  Him,  and  all 
those  who  in  after  days  were  to  believe  in  Him  who 
would  find  their  way  to  His  Cross,  and  there  obtain  their 
salvation. 

"  It   is   finished  ! " 5  He   said  ;    everything   is   consum- 

ings,"  he  says,  "were  the  pangs  of  thirst.  I  heard  this  from  an  eye-wit- 
ness, who  told  me  that  he  turned  his  eyes  hither  and  thither,  beseeching 
some  one  to  give  him  a  mouthful  of  water"  (Kosegarten,  Ohrestomathie 
arabe).     A  similar  thirst  is  felt  by  the  person  executed  by  empalement. 

1  It  is  generally  believed  that  this  sponge  had  been  brought  thither  by 
the  soldiers  in  order  to  wipe  away  the  blood  with  which  their  armor 
became  spotted  while  they  were  crucifying  the  prisoners. 

2"0£oi<s  (Matt,  xxvii.  48)  is  here  used  to  designate,  as  also  in  S.  Luke 
(xxiii.  36)  the  "posca,"  a  bitter  and  highly  spiced  wine  which  was  gener- 
ally drunk  by  Roman  soldiers. 

3  It  is  difficult  to  decide  what  plant  S.  John  (xix.  29)  means  to  indicate 
by  the  term  "  hyssop."  ( lertainly  it  was  not  the  aromatic  plant  which  now 
bears  this  name  among  us,  Hysoppus  Officinalis.  Dr.  Forbes-Royle  thinks 
he  has  discovered  it  in  the  caper-tree.  The  oldest  traditions  call  it  the  wild 
sweet  marjoram,  but  its  stem  is  manifestly  too  tender  to  sustain  the  weight 
of  a  sponge  soaked  with  vinegar.  The  term  made  use  of  by  S.  Matthew 
(xxvii.  48)  and  S.  Mark  (xv.  36),  KaXafios,  shows  that  some  sort  of  strong, 
firm  reed  was  employed,  such  as  the  reed-cane. 

4  Matt,  xxvii.  49  ;  Mark  xv.  36.  See  in  Cornelius  a  Lapide  (in  Matt., 
xxvii.  49)  the  several  hypotheses  proposed  in  order  to  reconcile  S.  Mat- 
thew's text  with  S.  Mark's.  The  one  we  have  adopted  here  appears  to  us 
most  touching,  and  at  the  same  time  most  respectful  toward  the  sacred 
text. 

6  John  xix.  30. 


340       THE  PASSION  AND  RESUBRE I  IK  >N  OF  JESUS. 

mated,  —  My    Passion,   My   Life,   and   the   Salvation   of 
mankind. 

Having  spoken  this  last  farewell  to  earth,  He  gave  Him- 
self into  His  Heavenly  Father's  keeping. 

"  Father,"  He  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  "  into  Thy  hands 
1  restore  My  Spirit." 1 

It  was  the  voice  of  a  son  throwing  himself  into  the  arms 
of  his  father,  yet  it  was  likewise  the  utterance  of  "Him 
from  Whom  no  one  taketh  His  Soul,  but  Who  layeth  it 
down  whensoever  it  pleaseth  Him."  2 

Most  of  the  disciples  who  were  gazing  upon  this  scene 
from  afar,  only  heard  "  the  great  cry  "  mentioned  by  Saint 
Matthew  and  Saint  Mark.3  So,  then,  it  must  have  been 
from  some  witness  standing  closer  to  the  Cross,  perchance 
from  Mary's  own  lips,  that  Saint  Luke  learned  Jesus'  last 
words.  John,  too,  was  there,  gazing  upon  the  Saviour ; 
and  he  saw  that  He  had  bowed  down  His  head  upon  His 
breast  and  that  He  was  dead.4 

1  Luke  xxiii.  46. 

2  John  x.  18.  Not  one  of  the  Evangelists  says  "  He  died,"  Wavev  ;  the 
terms  they  use  all  indicate  a  voluntary,  free,  spontaneous  act  :  'Ei;eiri>ev<rev 
(Mark  xv.  38;  Luke  xxiii.  46);  AcpqKev  to  irveOfjia  (Matt,  xxxii.  50); 
ilapidwKev  rb  irvevfia  (John  xix.  30).  "  Non  earn  deseruit  invitus,  sed 
quia  voluit,  quando  voluit,  quomodo  voluit"  (S.  Augustine,  Dc  Trinitate, 
iv.  16). 

3  Matt,  xxvii.  50  ;  Mark  xv.  37. 

4  John  xix.  30. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   TOMB   OF   JESUS. 

Matt,  xxvii.  51-66 ;  Mark  xv.  38-47  ;  Luke  xxiii.  45,  47-56  ;  Jolm  xix. 

31-42. 

"  Immediately  the  veil 1  of  the  Temple  was  rent  from 
the  top  clean  to  the  bottom  and  torn  in  twain  ;  the  earth 
quaked,  rocks  were  cloven  asunder,2  graves  opened,  and 
many  bodies  of  the  Saints  who  had  slept  rose  from  their 
tombs."3 

The  Roman  Centurion  was  the  first  to  bow  down  before 
the  evidence  of  these  prodigies.     With  his  soldiers  he  had 

1  Matt,  xxvii.  51,  52.  There  were  two  veils  in  the  Temple  :  one  sepa- 
rated the  Holy  Place  from  its  Vestibule  ;  the  other  hung  between  the  Holy 
Place  and  the  Holy  of  Holies  (Josephus,  Antiquitates,  viii.  3,  3  ;  Bellum 
Judaicum,  v.  5,  4 ;  Middoth,  iv.  7).  Everything  points  to  the  latter  as 
the  one  here  in  question  :  (1)  its  Greek  name,  KaraireTaafxa,  carefully  dis- 
tinguished by  Philo  from  the  outer  veil,  KaXvpL/uLa  (Dc  Vita  Mosis,  ii.  150)  ; 
(2)  the  vads  before  which  it  was  drawn,  the  term  always  used  to  signify 
the  Sanctuary,  in  opposition  to  iepov,  the  Temple  in  general  ;  (3)  the  words 
of  S.  Paul  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  x.  19-20  :  "This,  therefore,  is 
that  Veil  which  concealed  from  us  the  Glory  of  God  ;  'tis  the  Veil  which 
declared  plainly  that  hitherto  we  were  under  a  ban,  unclean,  incapable  of 
entering  evermore  into  the  Holy  of  Holies  ;  this  is  that  Veil  which  was 
rent  in  twain  .  .  .  thus  to  testify  that  by  the  death  and  blood  of  Jesus 
the  Sanctuary  was  flung  open  unto  us,  the  dead  received  life,  the  ban  and 
the  reproach  were  wiped  away.  Henceforth  all  things  were  altered  for 
mankind"  (Bossuet,  Meditations  sur  I' jZvttngilc  :  La  Cene,  i.  Ixxviii. ). 

2  One  of  these  cracks,  now  visible  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre, 
is  something  over  three  inches  wide  by  twenty  feet  in  depth ;  it  presents 
some  rather  unusual  features,  for  the  common  effect  of  such  earthquakes  is 
to  separate  the  beds  of  rock  according  to  the  trend  of  their  veins.  Here, 
on  the  contrary,  the  rock  is  torn  apart  transversely,  and  the  break  crosses 
the  veins  in  a  fashion  truly  supernatural  (consult  the  several  accounts  of 
Addison,  Millar,  Fleming,  Schawet,  etc.). 

8  S.  Matthew  adds  that  "after  the  Resurrection,  they  came  into  the 
Holy  City  and  appeared  to  many"  (Matt,  xxvii.  53). 


342       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

remained  on  Calvary,  standing  "over  against  Jesus;"1 
but  when  he  felt  the  earth  trembling  beneath  his  feet,  and 
beheld  the  Christ  "  in  death,  sending  forth  that  great  cry,"2 
"  tear  it'll  upon  him,  his  eyes  were  opened,  and  he  gave 
glory  to  God." 

"  Ay,  truly  this  was  a  just  man,"  he  cried,  "  this  was 
indeed  the  Son  of  God." 

And  forthwith  his  faith  affected  the  frightened  legion- 
aries, and  the  cry  arose  :  — 

"  Truly,  this  was  the  Son  of  God  !"3 

That  confession  from  the  lips  of  heathen  men,  in  ]  abs- 
ence of  the  expiring  Christ,  sealed  the  condemnation  of  the 
Jews.  And  they,  seeing  what  had  come  to  pass,  withdrew 
from  thence,  striking  their  breasts.4  Soon  upon  Golgotha 
two  little  groups  of  men  and  women  were  left  clustered 
her,  though  separated  according  to  sexes,  as  is  the 
Eastern  custom.5  On  one  side  were  the  disciples  of  Jesus, 
all  those  who  had  known  Him  so  well,  finally  united 
together  in  the  common  love  they  bore  their  Saviour; 
somewhat  further  away  stood  the  women,  who  had  fol- 
lowed Him  from  Galilee,  with  many  others  who  had 
accompanied  Him  hither  from  Jerusalem.  In  silence  all 
were  watching  Him  Whom  they  had  loved  so  dearly.6 
Among  them  we  once  more  meet  the  Magdalene  and  Mary 
mother  of  James,  whom  we  had  left  at  the  foot  of  the 
Cross,  and  with  them  Salome,  the  mother  of  Zebedee's 
sons.  The  gaze  of  every  one  there  was  fixed  upon  the  body 
of  the  Master,  for  they  clung  to  the  hope,  seeing  the  mar- 
vels whereat  even  the  Jews  were  confounded,  that  all  was 
not  ended  even  yet. 

Jesus  had  succumbed  about  the  ninth  hour,  but  the  two 
companions  of  His  sufferings,  if  nothing  shortened  their 
torments,  had  still  several  hours  of  agony  before  them. 
Now  the  law  prescribed  that  no  condemned  person  should 

i  Mark  xv.  39. 

2  Mark  xv.  39. 

3  Luke  xxiii.  47  ;  Mark  xv.  39  ;  Matt.  xxvn.  54. 

4  Luke  xxiii.  48. 

5  I. nkc  xxiii.  49. 

6  Mark  xv.  40,  41. 


THE   TOMB   OF  JESUS.  343 

be  left  upon  the  gibbet  longer  than  one  day,1  and  for  the  day 
before  the  Passover  this  commandment  was  more  impera- 
tive than  ever,  since  it  was  not  fitting  that  that  Holy  Day 
should  be  desecrated  by  the  spectacle  of  such  crucified 
bodies.  The  Jews  therefore  went  in  search  of  Pilate,2  and 
requested  him  to  have  the  legs  of  the  condemned  men 
broken,  so  that  they  might  be  removed  the  sooner.3 

The  Governor  despatched  another  band  of  soldiers  4  to 
Calvary.  Taking  heavy  clubs  they  broke  the  legs  and 
thighs  of  the  two  thieves  ;  but  coming  to  Jesus,  they  found 
only  a  dead  body.  To  break  His  limbs  would  be  an 
unnecessary  labor ;  so  one  of  the  soldiers,  in  order  to  make 
certain  that  the  corpse  was  altogether  lifeless,  buried  his 
lance5  in  the  right  side.6 

Saint  John,  who  was  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross,  saw  a 
stream  of  water  and  of  blood  flow  forth  from  His  breast. 

"  He  that  saw  it,"  he  says,  speaking  of  himself,  "  gave 

1  Deut.  xxi.  23.  The  Jews,  as  we  have  already  observed,  never  used 
crucifixion,  but  sometimes  the  judge  ordered,  after  the  stoning,  that  the 
criminal's  body  be  suspended  from  a  gibbet. 

2  John  xix.  31-37. 

3  It  was  the  custom  with  the  Romans  to  let  the  crucified  die  of  exhaus- 
tion, and  leave  him  afterwards  to  become  food  for  the  birds  of  prey  (Plau- 
tus,  Miles  Gloriosus,  ii.  4,  19  ;  Horace,  lib.  i.,  Epistolarum,  xvi.  48).  It 
was  only  on  rare  occasions  that  they  abridged  the  torment  by  lighting  a 
fire  under  the  gibbet,  or  by  letting  loose  ferocious  wild  beasts  to  devour 
the  criminal  (Cicero,  Ad  Qulnlicm  fratrem,  i.  2  ;  Ruinart,  t.  i.  p.  346  ; 
Eusebius,  Historia  ecclesiastica,  v.  1).  This  torture,  by  which  the  Jews 
desired  Pilate  to  put  an  end  to  the  death-struggles,  was  likewise  a  Roman 
usage,  but  was  regarded  as  part  of  the  legitimate  torture  of  crucifixion 
(Seneca,  Be  Ird,  iii.  32  ;  Suetonius,  Octav.,  lxvii.  ;  Valerius  Maximus, 
ii.  155).  More  than  once,  doubtless,  they  had  seen  victims  of  Roman  jus- 
tice succumb  in  a  short  time  beneath  the  clubs  of  the  executioners.  It  was 
this  speedy  death  they  were  now  so  anxious  to  obtain. 

4  The  soldiers  of  whom  S.  John  speaks  here  are  not  the  same  as  those 
who  had  set  up  the  three  crosses,  for  certain  very  strict  rules  forbade  the 
latter  from  going  away  from  the  gibbets  before  the  death  of  the  victims 
(Friedlieb,  ArchdoJocjie  der  Leidcnsgeschichte,  S.  149). 

5  Much  lighter  than  the  pilum,  the  hasta,  \6yxv,  a  long  spear-shaft 
terminating  in  an  oval-shaped  iron  point.  Eugene  Bournouf  gives  the 
derivation  of  this  word  as  from  the  Sanscrit  "hasta,"  hand;  he  fancies 
that  it  was  from  the  form  of  the  spear-point,  similar  to  an  extended  hand, 
that  this  weapon  happened  to  have  this  name. 

6  Such  is  the  commonly  received  tradition,  — one  which  dates  back  to 
the  earliest  ages  of  the  Church  (Cornelius  a  Lapide,  in  Joanncm,  xix.  34). 


344       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

testimony  thereto,  and  his  testimony  is  true,  and  he  knows 
that  he  says  true,  that  you  also  may  believe,  for  these 
things  were  done  that  the  Scripture  might  be  fulfilled  : 
1  You  shall  not  break  a  bone  of  Him ; ' 1  and  furthermore,  the 
Scripture  saith  again  :  '  They  shall  look  upon  Him  Whom 
they  pierced.' "  2 

To  Saint  John's  eyes,  this  last  act  of  the  Passion  was 
therefore  at  once  the  fulfilment  of  a  Prophecy  and  a  sym- 
bol of  future  grace.  The  spear-thrust  which  prevented  a 
bone  of  Jesus  from  being  broken  made  Him  of  a  truth 
the  real  Paschal  Lamb,  the  veritable  food  of  the  New 
Israel ;  while  the  water  and  the  blood  now  spilled  from 
His  wound  foreshadowed  on  the  one  hand  His  Baptism, 
with  the  life-giving  ablutions  of  grace,  and  on  the  other, 
His  blood  divine  in  the  Blessed  Eucharist.3 

As  evening  crept  on,4  a  Jew  who  had  not  hitherto 
appeared  upon  Calvary,  suddenly  presented  himself  among 
the  soldiers.     His  name  was  Joseph  of  Arimathea,6  and  he 

1  Exod.  xii.  46. 

2  Zach.  xii.  10.  The  quotation  is  adapted  freely  from  the  Hebrew  text, 
where  S.  John  had  read  the  lection,  YiVl,  which  Ewald  prefers  to  the 
others  :  "They  shall  cast  their  eyes  upon  Him."  The  generally  received 
reading,  '78  'Win,  gives  a  more  striking  meaning:  "It  is  I,  Jehovah, 
in  Whom  they  shall  recognize  Him  Whom  they  have  pierced.  And  then 
shall  they  weep  over  their  Victim,  even  as  one  weepeth  over  an  only 
son." 

3  It  is  well  known  that  after  death,  the  Jibrinc,  or  heavy,  red  part  of  the 
blood,  becomes  separated  from  the  watery  part,  called  serum.  Was  this 
the  water  and  the  blood  which  streamed  from  the  side  of  Jesus  ?  Many 
think  so,  but  for  the  most  part,  commentators  regard  the  fact  as  supernat- 
ural. This  question  is  learnedly  discussed  by  Father  Corluy,  Commentarius 
in  Evcnujeliiim  Sancti  Joannis,  p.  427. 

4  '0\f,ias  (Mark  xv.  42),  nightfall,  before  the  end  of  the  legal  day, 
which  did  not  terminate  at  sunset  but  at  starlight  (Lightfoot,  Hone 
Hcbraiccc,  in  Matt.  viii.  16). 

6  Eusebius,  Onomasticon,  and  S.  Jerome,  Epixtola  lxxxvi.  ad  Euslo- 
chium,  identify  Arimathea  with  Ramah,  the  native  country  of  Samuel  ; 
and  this  with  good  reason,  for  Arimathea  D^jnEH  (with  the  article, 
D'HTp^n)  would  appear  to  be  only  an  abbreviation  of  Ramathai'm 
Zophim,  the  name  of  the  town  where  dwelt  Elkana,  the  Prophet's  father 
(1  Kings  i.  1).  Everywhere  else  except  in  this  passage  we  find  the  con- 
traction Ramah,  HO"},  "the  High  Place,"  which  the  Septuagint  always 
translates  by  Arimathaini.     It  is  difficult  to  determine  what  modem  place 


THE   TOMB  OF  JESUS.  345 

was  a  member  of  the  tribunal l  which  had  condemned  Jesus. 
Eich,  powerful,  and  of  noble  mien,2  he  had  hitherto  lacked 
courage  to  declare  himself  in  favor  of  the  Lord,  for  fear  of 
the  Sanhedrin,  and  consideration  of  his  own  rank  had  held 
him  back.  Nevertheless  he  was  a  good  and  just  man, 
who  was  awaiting  the  Kingdom  of  God,  and  had  made  him- 
self one  of  the  Lord's  disciples.  Moreover,  he  had  allowed 
his  feelings  to  be  known  abroad  by  firmly  refusing  any 
assent  to  his  colleagues'  counsels  and  actions.3  The  Mas- 
ter's death  had  finally  conquered  him  ;  at  the  season  when 
all  were  shuddering  with  fear,  a  sudden  boldness  sprang 
up  within  him. 

He  came  to  Calvary,4  and  there  found  the  soldiers  pre- 
paring to  take  down  the  corpses,  so  as  to  bury  them  to- 
gether with  the  instruments  of  execution  ; 5  but  he  ob- 
tained from  the  Centurion  who  had  just  now  confessed  his 
belief  in  the  Christ's  Divinity  that  he  would  accord  him 
such  delays  as  he  deemed  necessary.  Joseph  then  boldly 
presented  himself  before  Pilate  and  besought  the  body.6 

is  to  be  considered  the  birth -place  of  the  great  Prophet.  Stanley  has 
counted  no  less  than  eight  which  dispute  for  this  honor  [Sinai  and  Pales- 
tine, p.  262).  Certain  traditions  give  the  preference  to  Ramleh  (Murray, 
Handbook  for  Palestine,  part  i.  p.  262)  ;  others  point  to  Neby  Samouil, 
lying  northeast  of  Jerusalem.  This  hill  with  its  gently  rolling  slopes 
answers  better  than  any  other  spot  to  what  we  know  of  Ramah  (Smith, 
Dictionary  of  the  Bible:  Ramah  ;  Caspari,  Einlcitung,  S.  57). 

1  Bou\ei/r?7s,  a  Sanhedrin- Councillor,  Mark  xv.  43.  The  Vulgate  trans- 
lation "Decurio"  is  quite  exact  ;  for  so  the  Latins  called  any  personages 
in  the  colonies  or  municipia,  who  were  invested  with  a  dignity  like  that  of 
the  Roman  Senators  (Forcellini,   Lexicon:  Decurio)- 

2  Euo-xT-w  (Mark  xv.  42)  denotes,  in  classic  Greek,  dignity  of  deport- 
ment and  appearance  ;  later  on,  it  came  to  be  used  to  designate  the  nobility 
as  contrasted  with  the  plebeians.  But  as  the  word  f3ov\evTfy  (Mark  xv.  43) 
has  already  declared  that  Joseph  held  high  rank  in  Israel,  evaxvM-w  cannot 
be  taken  as  a  mere  repetition  of  the  same  idea. 

3  Luke  xxiii.  51. 

*  'Oxpias  yevo/j.evris  9j\6ev  .  .  .  oSros  Trpoaekdibv  (Matt,  xxvii.  57,  58) 
seems  to  point  clearly  to  a  twofold  journey  on  Joseph's  part,  one  which 
brought  him  to  Calvary,  the  other  his  return  in  search  of  Pilate. 

5  "  Lignum  una  cum  suspenso  sepeliendum  est  '  (Maimonides,  Sanhe- 
drin, xv.).  Ordinarily  the  Jews  interred  executed  persons  in  some  place 
set  aside  for  this  purpose  ;  their  bones  could  not  be  laid  to  rest  in  the 
sepulchre  of  their  forefathers  until  they  were  entirely  desiccated  (Sepp, 
Leben  Jesu,  iii.  602). 

6  Mark  xv.  43-45. 


346       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

The  Governor's  first  thought  on  learning  of  the  decease 
of  Jesus  was  one  of  astonishment;  so  sudden  an  end  to 
this  torture  was  a  thing  unheard  of.  Having  had  the 
Centurion  brought  before  him,  he  inquired  of  him  whether 
Jesus  was  really  dead  already.  Upon  hearing  his  account 
lie  no  longer  hesitated  to  put  faith  in  Joseph's  word,  and 
willingly  granted  him  the  Saviour's  body,  for  it  was  Eoman 
usage  never  to  refuse  this  consolation  to  the  friends  of  the 
condemned.1  The  stars  whose  first  beams  would  announce 
the  beginning  of  the  Sabbath,  had  not  as  yet  shone  out 
through  the  twilight,  so  Joseph  had  still  sufficient  time 
to  purchase  the  linen  shroud,  with  the  winding-sheet,  in 
preparation  for  the  burial;  accordingly  with  these  he  re- 
turned to  Calvary,  where,  aided  by  the  disciples,  he  lifted 
Jesus  down  from  the  Cross. 

The  season  of  humiliations  was  passed  now.  His  body, 
nailed  to  a  criminal's  gibbet,  was  to  be  entombed  with 
becoming  decency.  Another  prince  of  Israel  now  helped 
to  prepare  His  resting-place.  It  was  Nicodemus,  the 
famous  Scribe  who  once  went  by  night  to  hold  converse 
with  Jesus.2  Trembling  before  his  fellow-councillors  of 
the  Sanhedrin,  he  had  until  now  dissembled  his  real  faith  ; 
but  the  sight  of  those  wonders  and  Joseph's  example  had 
triumphed  over  his  weakness,  and  he  followed  fast  upon 
his  footsteps  to  Calvary,  eager  to  lavish  his  wealth  upon 
the  Master  Whose  fate  he  was  now  bewailing.3  Perfumes 
and  spices  to  the  value  of  a  hundred  pounds,4  were  brought 
thither  by  his  orders ;  it  was  a  compound  of  myrrh  and 
aloes  ground  and  mixed  together.  With  this  the  bleeding 
wounds  were  covered,5  while  they  proceeded  to  pass  the 

1  Ulpian,  Digest,  xlviii.  24,  1 ;  Quintilian,  Dcclamationcs,  vi.  9,  21. 

2  John  iii.  1,  2. 
3.Tohn  xix.  39,  42. 

4  It  is  the  Roman  pound  of  twelve  ounces  (324  grams)  which  is 
referred  to  here  (sec  Saigey,    Traits  de  m€trologie). 

5  Embalmment  among  the  .lews  was  quite  different  from  that  of  the 
Egyptians.  The  latter  subjected  the  body  to  protracted  preparations,  ex- 
tracted the  inner  parts  and  the  brain,  and  preserved  it  for  seventy  days  in 
a  bath  of  natron,  etc.  Among  the  Jews,  not  an  incision  was  made  npon 
tlic  flesh  ;  they  were  content  with  washing  it  carefully,  dipping  it  in  costly 
oils,  and  swathing  it  in  perfumes  kept  in  place  by  linen  bands  ;  but  all  this 


THE   TOMB   OF  JESUS.  347 

long  linen  bands  about  the  body,  the  arms,  and  the  legs  ; 
according  to  Jewish  custom,  the  winding  sheet  enveloped 
His  head,  — and  thus  swathed  in  costly  ointments,  Jesus 
was  borne  to  the  tomb.  They  must  needs  hasten,  for  the 
Sabbath  was  almost  upon  them ;  they  had  only  these  swiftly 
fleeting  moments  of  even-tide,  wherein  to  complete  the 
sepulture  of  the  Lord. 

They  found  the  sepulchre  already  prepared  ;  for  near  the 
place  of  the  Cross 1  Joseph  of  Arimathea  owned  a  garden 
where  there  was  a  tomb  hollowed  out  of  the  rock,  which 
as  yet  had  never  been  used  for  any  man.  This  he  now 
consecrated  to  the  Master's  service,  since  the  nearness  of 
the  Sabbath  made  it  impossible  to  carry  Him  farther. 
Such  burial-caves,  chiselled  out  of  the  cliff-side,  were  made 
in  the  form  of  narrow  halls,  wherein  niches  or  rows  of 
benches  were  arranged  to  receive  the  bodies.2  You  en- 
tered these  tombs  on  a  level  with  the  ground  or  by  a  gen- 
tle decline,  and  the  mouth  was  closed  with  a  stone,  diffi- 
cult to  stir  from  its  solid  base.  Jesus  was  laid  upon  one 
of  these  funeral  couches.  With  the  help  of  their  compan- 
ions, these  pious  Srmhedrin-Councillors  hurriedly  pushed 
the  heavy  door  athwart  the  entrance-way ;  then  all  re- 
turned homeward  to  the  city,  over  which  the  calm  of  a 
Sabbath  night  had  now  fallen,  subduing  all  mankind  to 
silence,  —  the  holy  quiet  of  the  night  of  the  Great 
Sabbath. 

Meanwhile  the  saintly  women  had  followed  Joseph 
throughout;3  they  had  noticed  with  what  haste  the  two 
noble  Councillors  had  fulfilled  their  office,  with  all  else 
that  was  still  wanting  to  make  the  burial  worthy  of  the 
Christ.  So,  having  observed  keenly  where  they  had  laid 
Jesus,  the  weeping  women  returned  to  prepare  their  aro- 

did  not  prevent  decomposition,  for  we  find  it  had  commenced  in  the  case 
of  Lazarus  only  four  days  after  his  death. 

1  This  is  invaluable  testimony  to  the  authenticity  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre, 
for  there  we  see,  almost  side  by  side,  the  tomb  of  Jesus  and  the  Mount  of 
Calvary. 

2  See  De  Saulcy,  Histoire  da  V Art  judalque,  p.  233,  and  Nicolai  in  Ugot 
lini,  Thesaur.,  vol.  xxxiii. 

3  Luke  xxiii.  55,  56. 


34S      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OE  JESUS. 

matic  unguents  ;  "  and  on  the  Sabbath  day  rested,  accord- 
ing to  the  commandment. *' 

Nevertheless,  after  their  departure  the  garden  was  not 
left  entirely  deserted  ;  two  women  still  lingered  there,  sit- 
ting over  against  the  door  of  the  Sepulchre.  They  were 
Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary,  mother  of  Joses1  and  the 
Blessed  Virgin's  sister. 

In  vain  had  the  enemies  of  Jesus  hoped  that  His  death 
would  bring  them  respite  from  all  future  anxiety.  Hardly 
was  He  safely  housed  in  the  grave  before  they  recalled 
His  predictions.2  Had  He  not  proclaimed  that  upon  the 
third  day  He  would  rise  again ;  that  He  meant  to  vouch- 
safe them  but  one  Sign,  —  the  Sign  of  the  Prophet 
Jonas,  buried  three  days  beneath  the  waves  only  to  come 
forth  with  a  fuller  life ;  that  a  mystic  Temple  should 
be  destroyed  only  to  be  builded  up  again  in  three 
days  ? 

Recollections  like  these  robbed  them  of  that  night's  rest ; 
their  anxiety  and  fearfulness  were  so  overpowering  that 
we  see  them,  in  the  early  dawn,  already  assembling  again. 
And  this  notwithstanding  that  it  was  the  day  after  the 
Parasceve,  as  Saint  Matthew  remarks,  —  the  morning  of 
their  great  Paschal  Sabbath.  Put  everything  must  yield 
before  these  importunate  terrors,  even  the  hallowed  repose 
of  this  day ;  thus  they  braved  such  a  sacrilege  as  this  in 
order  to  hold  conference  with  a  Pagan,  upon  the  one  sol- 
em  nest  day  of  the  year. 

Pontiffs  and  Pharisees  forthwith  betook  themselves  to 
Tilate's  residence. 

"  My  Lord,"  they  began,  "  we  have  just  remembered  that 
tliis  impostor,  while  he  still  lived,  said:  'After  three  days 
I  will  rise  again.'  Give  orders  therefore  that  the  sepulchre 
be  guarded  until  the  third  day,  for  fear  that  his  disciples 
should  come,  and  steal  him  away,  and  tell  the  people  :  'He 

1  II  'Iwo-Tjros  (Mark  xv.  47).  This  lection  is  that  given  by  Laehmann, 
Tregelles,  ami  Tischendorf,  ami  taken  from  the  best  authorities.  The  read- 
ing in  the  Vulgate,  "Joseph,"  has  heen  adopted  by  Wieseler  who  makes 
this  Mary  the  daughter  of  Joseph  of  Arimathea  ;  but  this  hypothesis  has 
no  foundation  to  rest  upon. 

2  Matt,  xxvii.  62-66. 


THE   TOMB   OF  JESUS.  349 

is  risen  from  the  dead.'  For  then  the  last  error  wonld  be 
worse  than  the  first." 

"  Take  some  of  the  guards,"  l  answered  Pilate  ;  "go,  guard 
it  as  well  as  you  know  how." 

They  started  off  straightway,  and,  to  make  more  sure 
that  no  one  should  secretly  open  the  Sepulchre,  they  sealed 
up  the  huge  stone  and  stationed  before  it  their  guard  of 
Roman  soldiers. 

1  It  would  certainly  seem  that  ?xeT€  is  the  imperative  rather  than  the 
indicative.  Indeed  we  cannot  imagine  what  soldiers  Pilate  could  have  re- 
ferred to  when  saying  to  the  Councillors  :  "You  have  your  guard  ;"  since 
it  appears  from  S.  Matthew's  text  (xxviii.  11,  14)  that  the  watch  stationed 
at  the  tomb  was  not  any  of  the  Temple  militia,  the  only  body  which  the 
Sanhedrin  had  at  its  disposal,  but  was  composed,  in  fact,  of  legionaries. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE    RESURRECTION. 

I.     The  First  Apparitions. 

Matt,  xxviii.  1-15;  Mark  xvi.  1-11  ;  Luke  xxiv.  1-12;  John  xx.  1-18. 

While  the  Sanhedrin  party  were  busied  in  taking  pre- 
cautions against  Jesus,  the  great  middle-class  of  Jews  had 
deserted  Calvary  to  devote  themselves  to  preparations  for 
the  Paschal  ceremonies.  Throughout  this  day  what  feel- 
ings swept  over  the  hearts  of  the  disciples  ?  Was  it  not 
the  end  of  everything  for  them,  —  their  dreams  all  shat- 
tered, their  discouragement  and  grief  more  overpowering 
in  the  measure  that  their  expectations  had  been  so  full  of 
life  and  righteous  hopes  ?  We  might  justly  confess  to  a 
great  longing  to  know  something  of  the  conversation  of 
these  men,  after  having  been  so  bitterly  undeceived,  to 
hear  their  complaints  and  sympathize  with  their  passion- 
ate regrets.  But  the  Gospel  is  silent  concerning  the  ex- 
ceeding wretchedness  they  must  have  felt  that  day;  and 
we  are  told  simply  of  their  fidelity  to  the  Law  :  "  Accord- 
ing to  the  commandment,"  it  reads,  "  the  Sabbath  Rest  was 
observed."  1 

But  though  no  one  expected  aught  thereafter  from  their 
buried  Master,  still  they  loved  Him  always.  The  last  to 
leave  His  grave,  the  women  who  had  followed  Him  from 
Galilee  were  the  first  to  return  to  the  tomb,  eagerly  desir- 
ous to  embalm  the  Saviour's  body  with  greater  care  than 
Nicodemus  had  been  able  to  do.     Most  of  them  had  hail 

1  Luke  xxiii.  [><j. 


THE  FIRST  APPARITIONS.  351 

time  to  prepare  myrrh  and  sweet  spices,  after  the  Cruci- 
fixion ;  but  having  returned  from  Calvary  later,  Mary 
Magdalene,  with  Mary  the  mother  of  James,  and  Salome, 
were  unable  to  purchase  their  perfumes  till  the  evening  of 
the  morrow,  after  the  hallowed  season  of  rest ;  but  by  mid- 
night of  that  next  day  everything  was  in  readiness,  where- 
upon they  arose  and  set  forth,  to  fulfil  their  last  pious 
duty  to  the  dead. 

It  was  still  dim 1  and  misty  when,  fairly  anticipating  the 
First  Day  of  the  new  week,2  they  passed  without  the  city 
walls. 

"  Who  will  help  us  to  remove  the  stone  from  the  mouth 
of  the  Sepulchre  ?"  they  kept  murmuring  to  each  other  as 
they  hastened  along. 

Listening  to  these  words,  we  may  presume  that  Mary 
Magdalene,  Mary  mother  of  James,  and  Salome  (whom 
Saint  Mark  mentions)  were  at  this  juncture  still  alone; 
for  with  their  united  strength  the  holy  women  together 
would  have  foreseen  no  difficulty  in  pushing  away  the 
heavy  door  of  the  tomb.  Doubtless  their  companions 
were  following  them  in  the  meanwhile,  though  they  were 
as  yet  some  way  behind  them. 

1  'Q\pe  8e  aafifidruv  rrj  iirupuaKovo-ri  ej's  fxlav  aafifiaruv  (Matt,  xxviii.  1). 
By  itself  the  expression  6\p£  aa.pfia.Twv  would  signify  "at  the  end  of  the 
Sabbath,"  or,  in  other  words,  on  the  evening  of  the  day  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion ;  but  what  follows  (ttj  eiucpwaKovo-ri  .  .  .  kt\.,  with  7]/j.ipa  understood) 
determines  in  what  sense  it  is  to  be  taken  :  "at  the  first  beams  of  the  day 
which  followed  the  Sabbath. "  Here,  then,  we  have  to  do,  not  with  the  legal 
day,  which  with  the  Hebrews  lasted  from  evening  to  evening,  but  with  the 
natural  day,  which  ends  at  nightfall,  just  at  the  moment  when  a  new  day 
begins,  and  here  refers  to  the  closing  hours  of  this  lapse  of  time.  The  other 
Evangelists  do  not  allude  to  any  other  period.  "  It  was  still  dark,"  says 
S.  John  (xx.  1)  ;  "at  dawn"  according  to  S.  Luke  (xxiv.  1)  ;  after  having 
said  :  "  It  was  very  early,"  S.  Mark  continues  thus  :  "  the  sun  was  risen," 
dvarelXavros  rod  ijXiov  (Mark  xvi.  2)  ;  "  oriente  sole  "  (translation  in  Beza's 
Codex),  and  not  "  orto  sole"  (Vulgate).  But  the  sunrise  in  Eastern  lands 
lasts  such  a  little  while  that  we  can  understand  perfectly  how  the  holy 
women,  setting  out  amid  the  dusky  shadows  of  daybreak,  might  arrive  just 
at  the  moment  of  sunrise. 

2  Miav  (ja.fifia.ro3v  (Matt,  xxviii.  1)  is  a  Hebraism.  Of  all  the  clays  in 
the  week  the  Sabbath  alone  had  its  own  individual  name  ;  the  others  were 
designated  simply  as  the  First,  the  Second,  etc.,  Day  of  the  Week,  or,  of 
the  Sabbath.  The  latter  denomination  prevailed  in  the  time  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  we  encounter  it  constantly  in  Rabbinical  literature. 


352      THE  PA  SSION  AND  RESl  ERECTION  OF  JESUS. 

The  three  women  of  Galilee  were  at  some  distance  from 
the  garden,1  when  of  a  sudden  the  darkened  earth  quivered 
beneath  their  feet.  An  Angel  of  the  Lord  descended  from 
Heaven,  and  drawing  nigh  rolled  back  the  stone  which 
blocked  the  mouth  of  the  Sepulchre.  It  was  long  since 
tenantless,  for  Jesus  had  risen  before  the  dawn,2  in  a  great 
stillness3  and  all  unseen.  And  the  Angel  sat  upon  the 
stone;  his  countenance  glowing  brighter  than  the  light- 
ning, his  garments  all  of  a  whiteness  like  the  dazzling 
snow;  whereupon  the  guards  were  struck  with  such  fear- 
fulness  that  they  fell  down  like  dead  men,  and  as  soon  as 
might  be  one  and  all  fled  hack  to  town. 

Too  far  away  from  the  tomb  to  witness  what  had  just 
happened,  the  holy  women  were  fain  to  hesitate  for  an 
instant,  but  reassured  by  the  ensuing  quiet  they  pushed 
their  way  within  the  shadowy  garden,  and  at  last  making 
bold  to  raise  their  eyes  and  look  about,  they  beheld  the 
stone  drawn  away,  for  it  was  very  great.4 

At  this  sight  the  Magdalene  made  all  haste  back  to 
Jerusalem. 

"  Past  all  question,"  she  thought,  "  the  Master's  tomb  has 
been  violated  and  His  body  abandoned  to  His  foes !" 

So  thinking  she  runs  the  faster,  she  calls  with  hurried 
words  upon  His  friends ;  these  friends  were  John  the  Be- 
loved and  Peter,  who,  finding  his  way  before  this  to  the 

1  We  have  reason  to  infer  from  the  text  of  S.  Matthew  that  this  won- 
der occurred,  if  not  in  presence  of  the  holy  women,  at  least  upon  their 
approaching  the   garden  :  'HXfcv   Mapiap.   i)   M.aySa\rjvrj   ...    rat  Idov 

<re«w6s. 

2  'Avaffr&s  ir put  (Mark  xvi.  9). 

8  Such  was  the  common  opinion  of  the  Fathers.  "  Ut  vet ores  docent 
(S.  Augustine,  Scrmo  cxxxviii.  dc  Tempore ;  S.  Jerome,  Epistola  el.  ; 
S.  Chrysostom,  Homilia  lxxxiv.  in  Joan.),  surrexit  Christus,  sepulcro 
clauso,  sigillo  inviolato,  sicut  ex  utero  Virginia  natus  est"  (Janseniua 
Yprentius,    TetrateuchvA,  in  Matt,  xxviii.  2). 

*Ki>  yap  p-eyas  (Mark  xvi.  4):  his  object  in  recalling  this  detail 
was  to  explain  that  this  stone  was  huge  enough  to  be  perceived  by  the 
women  while  still  afar  off;  and  this  agrees  perfectly  with  the  hypothesis 
adopted  further  on,  —  that  the  Magdalene  had  noticed  only  that  this  stone 
was  rolled  away  when  she  hurried  back  to  Jerusalem  :  BX^ret,  says  S. 
John,  77><?xet  otv  (John  xx.  1,  2).  The  otv  declares  that  it  was  this  sight 
which  caused  Mary  Magdalene  to  so  hasten  her  steps. 


THE  FIRST  APPARITIONS.  353 

latter's  abode  had  fallen  down  at  Mary's  feet  bewailing  his 
own  fault.  Thereupon  together  they  mourned  the  death 
of  Jesus. 

"  They  have  taken  the  Lord  away,  from  out  the  Sepul- 
chre," cried  the  Magdalene,  "and  we  do  not  know  what 
they  have  done  with  Him." 

At  once  the  disciples  sped  away  to  the  tomb,  but  found 
no  trace  either  of  Mary,  mother  of  James,  or  of  Salome ; 
they  had  indeed  but  just  now  hurried  away,  "  transported 
with  fear  and  great  joy." 

These  two  women,  lingering  there  alone  after  Mary  Mag- 
dalene's swift  departure,  had  finally  decided  to  enter  within 
the  tomb.1  An  Angel  was  seated  at  the  right-hand  side  of 
the  dark  cave;  he  bore  the  outward  aspect  of  a  young  man 
clothed  with  white  raiment. 

They  trembled  much  at  seeing  him  and  fear  enchained 
their  tongues,  but  he  reassured  them  :  — 

"Fear  not  ye!"  he  said,  "I  know  you  seek  Jesus  of 
Nazareth,  Who  was  crucified.  He  is  risen,  He  is  no  longer 
here !  Come  and  see  the  place  where  they  laid  Him.  Go 
quickly  and  announce  to  Peter  and  the  disciples  that  He  is 
risen  from  the  dead.  He  will  go  before  you  into  Galilee : 
'tis  there  that  you  shall  see  Him,  according  as  He  foretold 
it  to  you.     Lo,  I  have  warned  you  thereof  beforehand." 

The  two  women  went  forth  from  the  Sepulchre,  their 
hearts  divided  between  happiness  and  terror;  but  soon 
their  fear  overpowered  them,  and  they  fled  without  daring 
to  repeat  what  they  had  just  now  seen  and  heard.2 

Meanwhile  the  two  Apostles  were  hastening  on  their 
way  toward  the  garden.3  Both  of  them  were  running,  but 
John  was  first  to  reach  the  spot.    Dreading  to  push  forward 

1  Mark  xvi.  5-8  ;  Matt,  xxviii.  5-8. 

'2  On  recovering  from  their  first  fright,  did  they  start  off  to  communi- 
cate the  news  to  the  Apostles  without  delay  ?  S.  Matthew  (xxviii.  8)  says 
as  much.  But  the  story  as  told  by  S.  Mark  (xvi.  8)  makes  it  impossible 
to  take  these  words  literally,  for  the  latter  notes  expressly  that  the  two 
women,  quite  speechless  with  fear,  first  lingered  aimlessly  about  the  tomb  : 
apparently  it  was  not  till  later  that  they  added  their  evidence  to  that  of 
the  other  women,  whereof  S.  Luke  will  shortly  give  us  an  account  (xxiv. 
1-11). 

3  John  xx.  3-10. 

VOL.    I!. — 23 


354      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

beneath  the  mouth  of  the  cave,  he  stooped  down  to  scan 
the  inner  gloom,  but  his  eyes  could  only  descry  the  linen 
cloths  lying  on  the  ground.  Hereupon  Peter  rejoined  him, 
entered  unhesitatingly  and  noted,  not  only  these  swathing- 
bands,  but  also  the  napkin  wherewith  the  Lord's  head  had 
been  enwrapt,  now  folded  and  laid  apart  in  a  corner  by 
itself.  Reassured,  John  followed  his  companion  and  shared 
his  glad  surprise.1  Within  the  empty  Sepulchre  there  were 
no  traces  of  violence  ;  the  burial  vestments  had  been  neither 
snatched  away  nor  hastily  left  behind,  but  folded  with  de- 
cent care.2  At  this  token  the  eyes  of  the  Apostles  Mere 
opened ;  at  last  they  believed  what  a  profounder  knowl- 
edge of  the  Scriptures  would  have  revealed  to  them  long 
before,  —  "  that  it  was  necessary  that  the  Christ  should  rise 
again  from  the  dead  !"  And  they  returned  straightway  to 
their  homes,  overflowing  with  gladness,  marvelling  among 
themselves  over  this  which  had  now  come  to  pass.3 

The  holy  women  and  the  two  Apostles  had  believed 
upon  the  Angel's  testimony,  but  to  Mary  of  Magdala  was 
reserved  the  privilege  of  first  beholding  the  Risen  Jesus.4 

1  Uerpbs  .  .  .  Beupei  (John  xx.  6).  "  Ipsius  animi  intentionem  deno- 
tat  qua  quis  intuetur  quidquam"  (Tittman,  De  Syncm.ym.is  Novi  Testa- 
int  ni i.  p.  120).     "Awafra  KaTibwTevijev  aKpiflws  (S.  Chrysostom,  in  loco). 

-  "They  comprehended  from  the  manner  in  which  the  linen  cloths  had 
been  gathered  together  and  folded  that  the  Christ  was  risen  indeed" 
(S.  Cyril  of  Alexandria,  in  loco).  S.  Augustine  understands  this  passage 
in  an  entirely  differeni  sense  :  "John  beheld  and  believed  what  the  Mag- 
dalene had  said,  that,  the  body  of  the  Lord  had  been  taken  away;  for  as 
yet  they  did  not  comprehend  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures,  —  to  wit,  that 
Jesus  must  rise  again  from  the  dead."  This  interpretation  does  not  seem 
to  us  as  happy  as  that  of  the  Greek  Fathers.  Indeed  it  assumes  tli.it 
neither  Peter  nor  John  had  any  recollection  of  the  Resurrection  so  often 
foretold  by  the  Master,  and  that  they  did  not  hesitate  to  believe  the  body 
hail  been  taken  away.  But  if  so  what  meaning  could  the  arrangements, 
so  minutely  described  by  S.  John,  have  had  in  their  eyes?  Why  that 
great  awe  and  wonder  wherein  S.  Luke  (xxiv.  12)  depicts  Peter  as  he  steps 
forth  from  the  Sepulchre  ?  How  explain  the  fact  that  these  two  disciples, 
the  most  devoted  of  all,  should  have  returned  straightway  to  their  homes 
without  showing  any  disquiet  as  to  what  had  become  of  the  body  of  Jesus  ? 
On  the  contrary,  ovSiirw  yap  ijdetcrav  no  longer  oilers  any  difficulties  if  we 
understand  it  thus  :  John  saw  and  believed  ;  hut  had  Peter  and  lie  hut 
known  the  Scriptures  better  they  would  have  had  no  need  of  those  exter- 
nal evidences  to  convince  them. 

3  Luke  xxiv.  12  ;  John  xx.  8-10. 

4  See  Addenda,  Vol.  II   p.  415. 


THE  FIRST  APPARITIONS.  355 

Coming  hack  to  the  tomb,  she  stayed  without,  while,  ever 
and  again  through  her  tears  she  would  peer  through  the 
dark  mouth  of  the  cave.  Suddenly  she  saw  two  Angels, 
all  in  white  array,  seated  there  where  the  body  of  Jesus 
had  been  laid,  one  at  the  head  and  the  other  at  the 
feet. 

"  Woman,"  they  say  to  her,  "  why  weepest  thou  ?  " 

"  Because  they  have  taken  away  my  Lord,"  she  replied, 
"and  I  know  not  where  they  have  laid  Him." 

And,  as  she  was  uttering  these  words,  she  turned,  she 
knew  not  why,  perceiving  the  presence  there  of  a  Man  and 
hearing  Him  say  :  — 

"  Woman,  why  weepest  thou  ?  whom  seekest  thou  ?  " 

"  It  is  the  gardener,"  she  thought ;  "  perhaps  he  may 
have  taken  the  body,  to  protect  it  from  any  insult." 

"  Sir,"  she  made  answer,  "  if  you  have  taken  Him  hence, 
tell  me  where  you  have  laid  Him.  I  will  go  and  carry 
Him  away." 

Jesus  spoke  but  one  word  in  answer. 

"  Mary ! " 

And  the  Magdalene  recognized  the  Voice  which  had  so 
many  times  comforted  her  soul.  She  threw  herself  at  the 
feet  of  Jesus,  crying  :  — • 

"  Master ! " 

And  in  the  greatness  of  her  joy,  she  clung  to  that  trans- 
figured Body. 

But  Jesus,  while  reminding  her  that  she  was  to  behold 
Him  again  more  than  once  before  the  Ascension,  now  bade 
her  to  return  immediately  to  the  Apostles. 

"  Touch  Me  not,"  He  said,  "  for  I  am  not  yet  gone  up 
unto  My  Father  ;  but  go,  find  My  brethren  and  say  to 
them  :  — 

" '  I  go  up  unto  My  Father  and  your  Father,1  to  My  God 
and  to  your  God.'  " 

Sublime  message,  whereby  the  Saviour  tells  all  those 
whom  He  came  on  earth  to  redeem  that  henceforth  they 

1  Tbv  Haripa  /jlov  ko.1  Yiaripa,  v/j.Cjv  (John  xx.  17).  The  article  is  not 
repeated,  in  order  to  declare  more  clearly  that  the  one  same  God  is  Father 
of  Christians  and  likewise  of  Jesus. 


35G      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

have  no  otheT  Father  but  His,  and  that  one  day  they  shall 
follow  after  Him,  to  His  Home  in  the  skies. 

Mary  Magdalene  rose  up  and  hastened  to  cany  His 
words  to  the  disciples.1 

"I  have  seen  the  Lord,  and  behold  this  which  He  hath 
said  to  nie  !  " 

But  as  yet  neither  Peter  nor  John  had  returned  to  find 
their  comrades  ;  Magdalene  therefore  found  them  over- 
whelmed with  mourning  and  tears.  In  vain  did  she  pro- 
claim that  Jesus  lived  and  had  appeared  to  her;  her 
thrilling  tones,  her  glowing  certainty  and  all  the  great 
rapture  with  which  the  sight  of  her  God  had  stirred  hei 
soul,  were  powerless  to  touch  them  ;  they  would  not  believe 
her. 

Even  while  the  messenger  chosen  by  the  Christ  was 
meeting  with  such  a  doleful  greeting  in  Jerusalem,  there 
were  other  women  of  Galilee  approaching  the  tomb.2  They 
came  thither,  after  the  example  of  the  two  Marys  and  Sa- 
lome, to  anoint  the  body  of  the  Lord,  and  numbered 
among  them,  beside  certain  of  the  disciples,3  Joanna,  wife 
of  Chuza,  the  Intendant  of  Herod  Antipas. 

At  sight  of  the  open  Sepulchre,  they  quickened  their 
steps,  but,  when  they  had  pressed  forward  within  the  nar- 
row tomb,  they  looked  about  in  vain  for  the  body  of  Jesus. 
And  as  they  stood  spell-bound  with  consternation,  all  at 
once,   two  Angels   stood   by   them,   in    shining  garments. 

1  Tots  fier  avrov  yeuo^vois  (Mark  xvi.    10).      It   would   serin  thai    the 

nine  Apostles  who  remained  together  alter  the  departure  of  Peter  and 
John  had  been  joined  by  certain  other  disciples  just  at  this  time.  S.  Mark, 
when  hereafter  recounting  one  of  the  appearances  of  Jesus  to  the  Apostles, 
for  the  only  time  makes  use  of  the  precise  expression  :  oi  ei>8eKa,  the  eleven 
(Mark  xvi.  14). 

2  Luke  xxiv.  1-11.  We  believe  that  the  appearance  hem  recorded  by 
S.  Luke  ought  to  lie  distinguished  from  the  one  we  read  in  S.  Matthew 
(xxviii.  1-8)  and  S.  Mark  (xvi.  1-8)  ;  for  there  are  some  noteworthy  dif- 
ferences between  the  two  narratives.  There  are  two  Angels  in  S.  Luke, 
but  in  the  other  Evangelists  only  one,  that  appeared  to  the  holy  women. 
The  words  of  the  celestial  messenger,  while  almost  identical  in  SS.  Mat- 
thew and  Mark,  arc  not  at  all  the  same  in  the  third  Gospel.  And,  finally, 
in  the  latter  we  find  no  trad'  of  the  terror  and  precipitate  Bight  spoken  of 
by  the  lir.-t  two  Synoptic  Writers. 

3  Kal  rtves  avv  cuVcus  ;  a  reading  found  in  the  Alexandrian  Manuscript 
and  in  Beza's  Codex. 


THE  FIRST  APPARITIONS.  357 

Seized  with  great  fright,  their  eyes  fell  before  the  glory 
of  the  heavenly  Visitants. 

"  Why  seek  ye  among  the  dead  for  Him  Who  liveth  ? 
He  is  no  longer  here.  He  is  risen  !  Eemember  that  which 
He  said  unto  you  when  He  was  yet  in  Galilee  :  '  The  Son 
of  Man  must  be  delivered  up  into  the  hands  of  sinners  and 
crucified,  and  the  third  day  rise  again.'" 

llecalling  those  words  of  the  Master  at  last,  they  sped 
back  to  bear  these  tidings  to  the  eleven  and  to  all  the  dis- 
ciples ;  but  even  while  they  were  hastening  along  the  garden 
path  Jesus  Himself  appeared  to  them. 

"  Hail !  "  He  said.1 

They  drew  nigh,  all  trembling,  and  kissed  His  feet  and 
worshipped  Him. 

"  Fear  not,"  pursued  the  Lord,  "  go,  tell  My  brethren  that 
they  depart  into  Galilee;  'tis  there  they  shall  see  Me." 

The  holy  women  obeyed  and  declared  before  the  Apostles 
that  they  had  seen  and  touched  the  risen  Body  of  Jesus ; 2 

1  Matt,  xxviii.  8-10. 

2  "  And  they  were  Mary  Magdalene,  Joanna,  and  Mary,  mother  of  James, 
who  came  with  the  other  women  to  tell  these  things  to  the  Apostles " 
(Luke  xxiv.  10).  These  words  do  not  necessarily  mean  that  all  the  holy 
women  went  together  in  search  of  the  eleven  ;  these  three  names  are  re- 
corded as  being  those  of  companions  of  the  Christ  who  by  their  rank  took 
place  at  the  head  of  the  several  groups,  or  who  were  emboldened  to  report, 
in  the  others'  name,  all  that  they  had  each  seen  and  heard.  Taking  the 
hypothesis  here  adopted,  the  Magdalene  came  first,  and  the  others  some  lit- 
tle time  after  her.  S.  Matthew,  it  is  true,  seems  to  gainsay  this  fact  when 
telling  us  that  Mary,  James's  mother,  and  Salome,  after  coming  out  of  the 
tomb,  ran  to  inform  the  Apostles  of  what  they  had  seen.  But  S.  Mark 
(xvi.  8)  on  his  side  shows  us  these  women  distraught,  and  at  first  not 
daring  to  speak  to  any  one.  Would  not  the  most  natural  way  of  concili- 
ating these  two  reports  be  to  understand  that  Mary  and  Salome  lied  away, 
but  did  not  convey  the  Angel's  message  to  the  Apostles  until  later,  when, 
recovering  from  their  first  shock,  they  had  regained  their  self-possession  ? 
Prior  to  this,  however,  while  still  wandering  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
garden,  they  met,  after  Mary  Magdalene's  departure,  the  more  numerous 
band  of  women  spoken  of  by  S.  Luke  (xxiv.  10),  and  after  having  heard 
the  further  message  of  the  Angel,  with  the  others  hastened  to  relate  all  to 
the  Apostles.  This  hypothesis  is  confirmed  by  another  reading  of  S.  Mat- 
thew's text,  found  both  in  the  Alexandrian  Manuscript  and  that  of  Eph- 
rnem  :  'lis  5e  ewopevovro  air  ay  yel\ci  rots  /xa#?;Tcus  avrov  Kal  ISod  'J-qaovs, 
kt\.  According  to  this  lection  it  was  just  at  the  moment  when  the  holy 
women  were  quitting  the  tomb,  to  betake  themselves  to  the  Apostles,  when 
Jesus  presented  Himself  before  them :  now  the  time  of  this  appearance 


358      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

but  they  credited  their  words  no  more  than  those  of  Mary 
Magdalene.  All  that  they  said  seemed  but  wild  fancy,  and 
they  obstinately  refused  to  believe. 

Hatred,  however,  had  given  the  enemies  of  Jesus  a  clearer 
insight  than  theirs.  Warned  by  some  of  the  guards  as  to 
what  had  occurred,  the  High-Priests  called  together  the 
Ancients  of  Israel,  and  took  counsel  as  to  what  it  behoved 
them  to  do,  in  order  to  avert  any  popular  belief  in  this  new 
prodigy.1  But  there  was  no  time  left  to  concoct  any  clever 
explanation  ;  they  must  content  themselves  with  collecting 
a  considerable  sum  of  money  and  giving  it  to  the  soldiers, 
telling  them  :  ■ — 

"  You  will  testify  that  his  disciples  came  by  night  and 
stole  away  the  body,  while  you  were  asleep  ;  and  if  the 
Governor  come  to  know  of  it,  we  will  appease  him  and 
secure  you." 

The  soldiers,  taking  the  money,  did  as  they  had  been 
bid,  and  from  mouth  to  month,  adds  Saint  Matthew,  this 
story  has  been  spread  among  the  Jews,  even  to  the  present 
day.2 

cannot  be  placed  before  that  other  whereby  the  Saviour  deigned  to  gladden 
tli'1  Magdalene's  heart,  since,  according  to  S.  Mark,  Jesus  manifested  Him- 
self to  her  first  of  all  :  'E<pai>r]  irp&TOv  Ma/Jia  (Mark  xvi.  !>). 

i  Matt,  xxviii.  11-15. 

2  S.  Justin  remarks  with  what  care  the  Scribes  and  masters  in  Israel  of 
his  own  times  propagated  this  falsehood  :  he  relates  that  men  were  ap- 
pointed  1<>  give  it  wider  circulation  throughout  the  world  (S.  Justin,  Ad- 
versus  Tryphonem,  108),  ami  we  encounter  this  lying  tale  from  century  to 
century  (Tertullian,  Adverstts  Marcionem,  iii.  23  ;  Eusebius,  in  Is.,  xviii.  1, 
etc.).  Probably  the  version  adopted  by  the  Toledoth  Jeshu  was  most 
widely  spread  ;  "Judas,"  we  read  therein,  "a  pious  and  wise  man,  having 
learned  of  Jesus  the  Sacred  Name,  whereby  the  latter  worked  his  miracles, 
delivered  him  over  to  his  enemies  at  the  Feast  of  the  Pasch.  Jesus  was 
slimed  and  hung  upon  the  gibbet;  but  this  same  Judas,  carrying  away 
the  master's  body,  buried  it  in  a  garden  in  the  bed  of  a  brook,  whose 
waters  lie  had  theretofore  diverted  for  the  time  being  ;  whereupon  he  tinned 
the  current  of  the  stream  back  to  its  original  course  in  such  a  way  that  no 
one  afterwards  could  find  the  liody  of  Jesus,  the  magician  "  (Eisenmenger, 
Entdecktes  Judenthum,  i.  190). 


THE  DISCIPLES  AT  EMMA  US.  359 

II.   The  Disciples  at  Emmaus. —  Jesus  in  the  Supper- 

Eoom. 

Luke  xxiv.  13-43  ;  Mark  xv.  12-14  ;  John  xx.  19-29. 

Meanwhile  the  day  was  slipping  away,  and,  besides  Peter 
and  John,  not  one  of  the  disciples  as  yet  believed  in  the 
Resurrection  of  their  Master.  Toward  evening1  two  of 
their  number  started  out  for  a  walk  outside  the  city  walls, 
takiug  the  road  leading  to  Emmaiis,2  a  village  situated 
some  sixty  stadia  from  town,  in  a  westerly  direction.  The 
Crucifixion,  the  wondrous  doings  at  the  Sepulchre,  these 
rumors  noised  about  by  the  women,  formed  the  whole  theme 
of  their  earnest  talk.  And  while  their  minds  were  absorbed 
in  these  thoughts  Jesus  drawing  near  walked  along  beside 

1  It  was  but  a  two  hours'  walk  from  Jerusalem  to  Emmaiis,  and  the  dis- 
ciples did  not  reach  it  until  late  in  the  afternoon  (Luke  xxiv.  29)  ;  so  that 
they  could  not  have  started  out  from  Jerusalem  until  an  advanced  hour  of 
the  afternoon. 

2  In  the  time  of  S.  Jerome  {in  Dan.  viii.,  ct  Ezeeh.  xlviii. )  and  of  Euse- 
bius  {Onoma.it icon)  it  was  generally  admitted  that  S.  Luke's  Emmaiis  was 
the  town  afterward  called  Nicopolis  (the  modern  Amouas),~and  situated  in 
the  Plain  of  the  Philistines.  However  ancient  this  tradition  may  be,  the 
distance  between  Jerusalem  and  Nicopolis  (176  stadia)  makes  it  impossible 
to  identify  the  latter  town  with  Emmaiis,  which  S.  Luke  locates  but  sixty 
stadia  from  the  Holy  City.  It  is  true  some  MSS.  have  eKarbv  e^rjKovra  in- 
stead of  i^rjKouTa,  but  among  these  the  Codex  Sinaiticus  alone  has  any 
real  authority,  and  this  isolated  evidence  cannot  outweigh  that  of  the  old- 
est MSS.,  and  almost  all  the  Versions.  Josephus  (Bellum  Judaicum,  vii. 
6,  6)  mentions  a  hamlet  by  the  name  of  'A/x/xaovs,  distant  some  sixty  stadia 
from  Jerusalem,  where  Titus  founded  a  colony  of  veterans.  Now  at  pre- 
cisely this  distance  from  the  city,  on  our  way  to  Jaffa,  we  meet  with  the 
little  village  of  Kolonieli  ;  this  name  tells  us  that  here  was  established  the 
only  Roman  colony  of  which  Josephus  makes  mention  as  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  Holy  City.  Its  ancient  name  of  Emmaiis  would  naturally 
disappear  during  the  period  of  Roman  occupation  :  "  Multae  sunt  urbes 
quibus  Colonise  nomen  haesit,  quod  in  eas  olim  Romani  colonias  de- 
duxerant,  ut  Colonia  Agrippina,  Allobrogum,  etc."  (Forcellini).  This 
hypothesis  is  confirmed  by  a  passage  in  the  Talmud,  where  we  read  that 
the  green  boughs  for  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  were  gathered  generally 
in  a  place  in  the  neighborhood  of  Jerusalem  called  Mauza  :  X¥'l?3  (with 
the  article  Xi'lDH,  Hammauza  ;  Ammaiis)  ;  and  the  Gemara  adds  : 
"  Mauza  is  no  other  than  Kolonieh."  Ever  since  the  Middle  Ages  the 
Latin  traditions  have  located  Emmaiis  at  Koulieibeh  (see  Frere  Lievin 
de  Hamme's  Guide  Indicateur,  iie  partie,  p.   126 J. 


360       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS 

them,  but  "  their  eyes  were  veiled  in  such  wise  that  they 
did  not  know  Him."  They  became  silent,  thinking  they 
had  to  do  with  a  stranger. 

"  What  were  you  saying,"  asked  the  Lord,  "  and  what 
were  you  discussing  so  earnestly 1  along  the  way  ?  " 

The  disciples  stopped  to  look  up  at  Him,  with  a  glance 
of  mingled  sorrow  and  suspicion.2 

"  Stranger,"  3  replied  one  of  them,  whose  name  was  Cleo- 
phas,4  "  are  you,  then,  the  only  one  in  Jerusalem5  ignorant  of 
the  things  which  have  happened  there  in  these  clays  ? " 

"  What  things  ?  "  the  Saviour  asked. 

"  Why,  concerning  Jesus  of  Nazareth,"  they  responded  ; 
and  forthwith  both,  amazed  as  they  were,  began  to  vie 
with  each  other  in  recalling  what  manner  of  man  was  this 
Jesus,  —  a  Prophet  mighty  in  work  and  word  before  God 
and  all  the  people. 

"  Do  you  not  know  how  the  princes  of  the  priesthood, 
and  our  chief  men,  delivered  him  over  to  be  condemned 
to  death  and  have  crucified  him  ?  We  indeed  had  hoped 
that  he  would  have  delivered  Israel;  moreover  and  besides 
all  this,  it  is  now  the  third  day  since  these  things  occurred. 
It  is  true,  certain  women  who  were  of  our  company  have 
much  affrighted  us.  On  going  before  daybreak  to  the 
Sepulchre  they  did  not  find  his  body,  but  returned  saying 

1  'Air</3a\AeTe  (Luke  xxiv.  17). 

2  The  reading  Kai  (.araQ^aav  aKvOpwiroi  :  "  Et  erant  tristes,"  given  by 
the  most  ancient  MSS.,  seems  preferable  to  that  of  the  Received  Text  and 
the  Vulgate  :  "  Et  estis  tristes,"  Kai  eVre  aKvd/juwol. 

3  UapoiKeh  'lepovaaXrin  might  mean  :  "Thou  dwellest  near  Jerusalem," 
'IcpovcraXri.u  in  this  case  being  in  the  dative  ;  but  this  expression  is  oftener 
used  in  the  sense  of  having,  as  a  visitor  or  a  foreigner,  only  temporary  resi- 
dence in  town.  Doubtless  it  was  something  about  the  outward  garb  (if 
Jesus  that  led  the  two  disciples  to  take  Him  for  one  of  the  pilgrims  come 
up  for  Passover  Week. 

4  Cleopas,  K\eo7ras,  is  an  abridged  form  of  KXeSirarpos,  and  must  not 
be  confused  with  Cleophas  or  Alpheus,  husband  of  Mary,  sister  of  the 
Holy  Virgin.  According  to  certain  traditions  his  companion  was  called 
Simon,  and  both  alike  were  of  the  number  of  the  seventy-two  disciples 

i,  in  Joan,  i.  7  :  S.  Cyril  of  Alexandria,    in  loco). 

5  Perhaps  it  would  be  more  natural  to  make  /movos  refer  to  Trapoifcds,  and 
translate  it  thus :  "  Do  you  then  dwell  all  alone  in  Jerusalem,  apart  from 
any  human  intercourse,  that  you  are  unaware  of  what  has  come  to  pass  in 
these  days  ?"  (Trench,  Studies  in  the  Gospel,  p.  321). 


THE  DISCIPLES  AT  EMMAUS.  361 

that  they  had  seen  a  Vision  of  Angels  who  told  them  that 
he  is  alive.  And  some  of  our  people  went  to  the  sepul- 
chre and  found  everything  as  the  women  had  said,  but 
him  they  saw  not." 

All  this  was  indeed  nothing  short  of  an  avowal  that 
they  no  longer  believed  in  Jesus,  and  now  only  recognized 
in  Him  a  Prophet,  who,  after  blazing  forth  for  an  instant 
in  their  midst,  had  disappeared  into  the  vast  unknown  like 
so  many  others.  Putting  no  further  trust  in  a  dead  leader 
they  were  for  withdrawing,  saddened  with  the  thoughts  of 
such  sweet  hopes  deceived. 

"  0  foolish  and  slow  of  heart,"  cried  their  Fellow-Travel- 
ler, "  who  are  unable  to  believe  what  the  Prophets  have 
spoken !  Did  it  not  behove  the  Christ  to  suffer  these 
things  and  so  to  enter  into  His  glory  ? " 

And  beginning  from  Moses  and  from  all  the  Prophets, 
He  explained  to  them  that  which  was  spoken  of  Him. 
Throughout  this  masterwork  of  Inspiration,  wherein  are 
given  the  great  outlines  of  that  Prophetic  figure  of  the 
Messiah,  it  was  an  easy  matter  for  Jesus  to  display  how, 
line  by  line,  every  feature  of  His  Passion,  His  Death,  and 
His  Resurrection,  had  been  foreshadowed.  And  yet  by 
themselves  what  can  the  Holy  Books  effect,  even  when 
interpreted  by  lips  Divine  ?  They  can  only  brighten  our 
eyes  with  the  first  rays  of  faith  ;  to  enlighten  and  convince 
the  soul,  God's  grace  must  penetrate  it  altogether. 

The  three  travellers  had  reached  the  hamlet  of  Emmaiis. 
Jesus  made  as  though  He  would  go  further,  but  the  disci- 
ples, all  glowing  with  so  much  as  they  had  heard  of  the 
Truth,  constrained  Him  to  abide  with  them. 

"  Stay  with  us,"  they  begged,  "  for  it  is  late  and  the  day 
is  drawing  to  a  close." 

Yielding  to  their  entreaties,  Jesus  entered  their  stop- 
ping-place with  them,  where  the  place  of  honor  was  set 
aside  for  Him,  and  then  as  He  sat  with  them  at  table,  He 
took  bread,  blessed,  brake,  and  gave  it  to  His  companions. 
But,  in  the  hands  of  the  Priest  Eternal,  the  grain  grown 
from  the  ground  became  the  Bread  of  Heaven,  while  at 
once  a  mighty  flood  of  grace  filled  to  overflowing  the  hearts 


3G2      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

of  these  two  disciples  ;  their  eyes  were  opened  ;  at  last  they 
recognized  Jesus,  and  though  indeed  He  vanished  from 
them  forthwith,  their  faith  in  His  Eesurrection  remained 
none  the  less  firm. 

"  Is  it  not  true,"  they  cried  to  one  another,  "  that  our 
hearts  were  all  burning  within  us  while  He  talked  with 
us  on  the  way,  and  revealed  to  us  the  meaning  of  the 
Scriptures  ? " 

And  they  rose  up  that  same  hour,  and  returned  to  Jeru- 
salem, to  acquaint  the  Apostles  with  what  had  happened. 

They  found  the  eleven  gathered  together  in  the  Supper- 
Eoom,  and  as  they  entered  were  greeted  with  these 
words : 

"  The  Lord  is  truly  risen.    He  has  appeared  to  Simon."  1 

Thereupon  they  in  their  turn  related  what  had  occurred 
by  the  way-side,  and  how  they  had  known  Him  in  the 
breaking  of  bread.2  But  their  tale  did  not  obtain  the  same 
credence  as  had  that  of  Peter  ;  this  Wayfarer)  walking  along 
beside  them,  and  breaking  bread  at  table  with  them,  this 
was  no  longer  the  Christ  in  His  Triumph,  Whom  Simon 
and  the  holy  women  had  adored.3  Far  from  confirming 
their  newborn  faith,  this  new  testimony  only  contributed 
to  increase  the  doubts  still  springing  up  in  their  unsettled 
minds ;  and  so  among  those  gathered  around  the  table 
where  the  Apostles  sat  at  supper,4  unbelief  continued  to 

1  Luke  xxiv.  34.  This  saying  recorded  by  S.  Luke  is  the  only  mention 
left  us  of  the  Saviour's  having  appeared  to  Simon  Peter  ;  evidently  this 
manifestation  must  have  taken  place  niter  the  Apostle  quitted  the  tomb. 

-  Protestant  exegetical  students  have  tried  in  vain  to  weaken  the  unani- 
mous testimony  of  Tradition,  which  has  always  regarded  this  breaking  of 
bread  as  a  renewal  of  the  Eucharistic  Banquet,  for  the  first  time  and  by 
Jesus  Himself  (Cornelius  a  Lapide,  in  Luc.  xxiv.  30).  They  have  not 
scrupled  to  recur  to  very  singular  explanations  of  the  fact ;  as,  for  exam- 
ple, that  the  hands  of  Jesus,  hitherto  concealed,  became  visible  to  the  dis- 
ciples'eyes  at  the  moment  they  were  breaking  the  bread,  and  thus  they 
recognized  Him  from  the  wounds  of  His  crucifixion  (Paulus). 

3  'Kfiavepwd-r)  en  eripq.  p-opcpfi  (Mark  xvi.  12). 

4  Was  this  meal  already  begun  when  the  travellers  from  Emmatis  en- 
tered the  room,  or  did  it  only  take  place  after  their  arrival  ?  Here  the 
Evangelist's  silence  makes  it  impossible  to  feel  positive  as  regards  this 
point,  but  at  any  rate  the  Apostles  were  still  at  table  and  still  obstinate  in 
their  unbelief  when  the  Lord  appeared:  avaneipLivois  avroh  (Mark  xvi.  14), 
avTWf  \a\ovt>Tuii>  (Luke  xxiv.  36). 


JESUS  IN  THE  SUPPER-ROOM.  363 

be  in  the  ascendency,  when  all  at  once  Jesus  stood  in 
their  midst.1 

"  Peace  be  with  you,"  He  said. 

Their  first  feeling  was  one  of  great  fear.  It  was  indeed 
the  Lord  they  beheld  with  their  own  eyes.  His  familiar 
features,  the  tones  of  His  voice,  even  His  customary  greet- 
ing, everything  precluded  the  possibility  of  mistake. 

"  But  how  could  He  have  entered  with  no  noise,  though 
the  doors  were  shut  for  fear  of  the  Jews  ?  Might  it  not 
be  a  spirit  ? "     And  their  terror  increased. 

Jesus  reassured  them. 

"It  is  I,"  He  said ;  "  fear  nothing ! 2  Why  are  you 
troubled  and  reason  thus  in  your  hearts  ?  Behold  My 
hands  and  My  feet !  '  T  is  indeed  I  Myself.  Touch,  and 
consider  that  a  Spirit  hath  neither  flesh  nor  bones,  as  you 
see  that  I  have." 

And  showing  them  His  pierced  hands  and  His  feet, 
uncovering  His  side,  He  bade  them  contemplate  and  han- 
dle His  flesh  and  His  wounds.3 

Overwhelmed  with  wondering  awe,  the  Apostles  still 
stood  amazed.  One  last  sign  was  needed  to  convince 
them. 

"  Have  you  here  anything  to  eat  ?  "   asked  Jesus. 

Apiece  of  roasted  fish  and  some  honeycomb4  were  lying 
upon  the  table.  Of  these  He  ate,  —  not  that  He  was 
hungry,  but  to  show  that  His  risen  body  had  kept  its  na- 
ture unchanged.  Thereupon  taking  the  fragments,  He 
gave  them  to  the  Apostles. 

1  John  xx.  19.  S.  John  makes  note  of  the  fact  that  this  Appearance 
happened  upon  the  very  evening  of  the  Resurrection  :  ttj  r)^pa  iiceivfi  ry 
fiiq.  <ral3j3&TU)v  (compare  John  xx.  1,  with  xx.  19). 

2  Luke  xxiv.  36.  These  words,  though  omitted  in  most  of  the  MSS., 
are  retained  in  almost  all  the  Versions. 

3  The  feeling  of  Tradition  seems  to  be  that  the  Apostles  touched  the 
body  of  Jesus,  and  that  S.  John  had  this  Appearance  in  mind  when,  in 
the  testimony  he  offers  to  the  Humanity  of  the  Christ,  in  the  first  verse 
of  his  First  Epistle,  he  says  :  "  We  have  seen  Him  with  our  eyes  ;  we  have 
touched  Him  with  our  hands"  (S.  Leo,  Epist.  xcvii.  ;  S.  Augustine, 
Sermo  xviii.,  de  Verbis  Domini). 

4  These  words,  though  not  found  in  the  MSS.  of  Alexandria,  Sinai,  the 
Vatican,  or  Beza,  can  claim  the  authority  of  the  most  important  Versions. 


364       THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Peace  being  restored  within  their  troubled  minds,  Jesus 
reproached  His  own  for  the  hardness  of  their  hearts,  because 
they  would  not  believe  those  who  had  beheld  Him  risen 
from  the  tomb.1  Yet  straightway  He  was  moved  to  com- 
passion for  these  earthly  minded  mortals,  and  only  strove 
to  strengthen  their  courage  by  comfortable  promises.2 

"Peace  be  unto  you  all,"  He  said  again;  "as  My  Father 
hath  sent  Me,  I  send  you." 

Then,  breathing  upon  them,  as  a  sign  that  He  commun- 
icated unto  them  His  power, 

"Eeceive  ye  the  Holy  Ghost,"  He  said  ;  "the  sins  which 
you  remit  shall  be  remitted,  those  that  you  retain  shall  be 
retained." 

Never  was  any  higher  authority  conferred  on  man  ;  for 
by  these  words  Jesus  instituted  the  Sacrament  of  Pen- 
ance3 and  gave  to  mortals  the  power  of  disposing  of  eternal 
treasures,  the  right  of  opening  and  shutting  the  gates  of 
Heaven. 

Now  Thomas,  one  of  the  Twelve,  was  not  with  them 
when  Jesus  appeared  in  the  Supper-Room.4  Of  all  he  was 
most  prone  to  doubt ;  so  when  the  joyous  disciples  greeted 
him  with  the  words,  "We  have  seen  the  Lord!"  he  only 
answered  them  :  — 

"  Except  I  shall  see  in  His  hands  the  mark  of  the  nails, 
and  lay  my  finger  upon  the  print  of  the  nails,  and  put  my 
hand  into  His  side,  I  will  not  believe." 

1  Mark.  xvi.  14.  S.  Jerome  mentions  a  curious  lection  in  S.  Mark, 
which  betrays  the  handiwork  of  some  forger  of  the  Maniebean  persua- 
sion :  "  In  quibusdam  exemplaribus,  et  maxime  in  greeds  codicibus  juxta 
Marcum,  in  fine  ejus  Evangelii  scribitur :  '  Postea  cum  accubuissent  nn- 
decim,  apparuit  cis  Jesus,  et  exprobravit  incredulitatem  et  duritiam  cordis 
eorum,  quia  his  qui  viderant  eum  resurgentem  non  crediderunt  :  et  illi 
satisfaciebant  dicentes:  Sseculum  istud  iniquitatis  et  incredulitatis  sub- 
stantia est,  quae  non  sinit  per  immundos  spiritus  veram  Dei  apprehendi 
virtutem  :  idcirco  jam  nunc  revela  justitiam  tuam  '  "  (S.  Jerome,  Advcrsus 
Pi  lagianos,  lib.  ii.  15). 

2  John  xx.  21-23. 

8  Tlie  formal  declaration  of  the  Council  of  Trent  leaves  us  no  room  to 
question  that  it  was  during  this  Manifestation  that  Jesus  instituted  the 
Sacrament  of  Penance  (Scss.  xiv.,  cap.  i.,  et  can.  3.  See  the  testimony  of 
the  Fathers  in  Bellarmine,  lib.  iii.,  de  Pcenitentia,  cap.  ii.). 

4  John  xx.  24-li'.'. 


JESUS  IN  THE  SUPPER-ROOM.  365 

Nevertheless,  distrustful  as  Thomas  showed  himself  to 
be,  he  was  none  the  less  deeply  attached  both  to  the  Mas- 
ter Whom  he  now  mourned,  and  to  his  brethren  whose 
renewed  faith  and  gladness  he  envied.  Eight  days  later 
we  find  him  again  in  their  company,  though  as  ever  incred- 
ulous, and  consumed  at  heart  with  sad  regrets. 

Then,  just  as  formerly,  the  doors  of  tiiat  upper  chamber1 
being  fast  closed,  Jesus  came  and  stood  in  the  midst  of 
the  disciples. 

"Peace  be  unto  you!"  He  said.  Then  speaking  to 
Thomas  :  — 

"  Put  forth  thy  finger  here  and  see  My  hands,  reach 
hither  thy  hand  and  place  it  in  My  side,  and  be  not  faith- 
less, but  believing." 

"  My  Lord,  and  my  God  ! "  cried  out  the  Apostle. 

He  no  longer  asked  to  touch  the  wounds  of  the  Saviour, 
but  prostrate  at  His  feet  worshipped  Him  and  implored 
His  forgiveness. 

For  all  rebuke,  Jesus  contrasted  this  tardy  submission 
with  the  great  merit  and  happiness  of  those  many  souls 
who  should  believe  in  Him  without  having  seen  Him  :  — 

"  Thomas,  thou  hast  believed  because  thou  hast  seen  Me. 
Blessed  are  they  that  without  seeing  have  believed  ! " 

1  The  disciples  were  assembled  in  a  place  indicated  by  S.  John  vaguely 
as  &ru>  (John  xx.  26) ;  yet  this  could  be  nowhere  else  but  the  Supper- 
Room,  for  in  the  Acts  we  find  that  that  upper  chamber,  hallowed  by  mem- 
ories of  the  Last  Supper,  had  become  their  customary  place  of  meeting 
(Acts  i.  13  ;  ii.  1,  etc. ). 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   FORTY  DAYS. 

I.    Jesus  Appearing  to  His  Disciples  in  Galilee. 

John  xxi.   1-24  ;  Matt,  xxviii.  16-20  ;  Mark  xvi.  15-18. 

As  now  the  last  days  of  the  Paschal-tide  were  over,  very 
many  of  the  disciples  set  forth  from  Jerusalem  to  return 
home  to  Galilee.  It  was  there  the  Master  had  declared, 
even  before  His  death,  that  He  would  precede  them ;  and 
now  the  Angels  and  the  Pesurrected  Christ  Himself  had 
reiterated  this  promise.1  Accordingly  they  all  hastened 
toward  that  country,  selected  by  Jesus  not  without  special 
design.  Indeed,  by  thus  withdrawing  His  Presence  to  that 
region  He  avoided  any  collision  with  the  Sanhedrin  peo- 
ple ;  any  solemn  manifestation  of  Himself  there  was  much 
less  dangerous  than  at  Jerusalem,  where  hatred  kept  His 
foes  ever  watchful,  and  ready  to  instantly  exterminate  the 
new-born  Church,  had  she  ventured  to  publish  abroad  the 
triumph  of  her  Head. 

The  Apostles  were  the  first  to  obey  the  Lord's  behests, 
and  shortly  after  this  seven  of  their  number  chanced  to  be 
gathered  on  the  lakeshore   of  Genesareth.2     "There  were 

1  Mark  xvi.  7 ;  Matt,  xxviii.  10. 

2  The  miraculous  haul  of  fish  and  the  conversation  which  followed 
(John  xxi.)  preceded  the  appearance  of  Jesus  to  all  the  disciples  (Matt. 
xxviii.  16-20),  for  S.  John  observes  that  this  meeting  of  the  Lord  with 
His  seven  disciples  by  the  Lakeside  was  His  third  Manifestation  to  the 
Apostles  together  (xxi.  14).  Now  Jesus  had  already  appeared  twice  in  the 
Supper-Room  (John  xx.  19,  26). 


APPEARING  TO  HIS  DISCIPLES  IX  GALILEE.     367 

together  Simon  Peter,  Thomas  called  Didyruus, Natnanael  of 
Cana  in  Galilee,  and  the  two  sons  of  Zebedee.  The  two 
other  disciples  are  not  named,  but  the  presence  of  Peter 
makes  us  think  at  once  of  Andrew,  his  brother,  and  also 
of  Philip,  their  fellow-townsman  and  Andrew's  usual 
companion.1 

The  community  funds,  whereby  their  daily  needs  had 
been  provided  for,  had  disappeared  with  Judas.  Peter's 
eyes  fell  upon  his  boat  and  nets. 

"  I  go  a-fishing,"  he  said. 

All  started  up  at  once,  replying  :  — 

"  We  too  will  go  with  you." 

It  was  near  the  twilight  hour,  the  most  propitious  time 
for  fishing  ;2  they  started,  pushed  out  with  their  boat,  and 
for  a  long  time  trailed  across  those  waters,  whose  likeliest 
spots  they  knew  so  well  ;3  but  their  efforts  were  fruitless; 
all  that  night  they  took  nothing. 

At  dawn  they  were  still  dragging  along  near  the  banks, 
when  they  descried  a  man  standing  upon  the  beach. 

It  was  Jesus,  but  as  yet  they  did  not  recognize  Him. 

"  Children,"  4  said  He,  "  have  you  anything  to  eat  ?  " 

"  No,"  they  answered  Him. 

"  Cast  the  net  on  the  right  side  of  the  boat,"  He  said, 
"  and  you  shall  find." 

The  grave  authority  of  the  words  struck  the  Apostles  ; 
the  remembrance  of  a  similar  prodigy,  happening  on  these 
same  waters  and  at  this  very  hour,  after  just  such  another 
night  of  barren  toil,  at  once  darted  across  their  minds. 
Instantly  they  cast  the  net,  but  were  unable  to  draw  it  up 
again,  so  loaded  down  was  it  with  fish.  At  this  token 
the  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved  said  to  Peter  :  — 

"  It  is  the  Lord  !  " 

And  Simon    Peter,   when  he   beard    it   was   the  Lord, 

1  John  i.  45,  xii.  22  ;  Mark  iii.  18. 

3  See  vol.  i.  p.  217,  note  2. 

3  The  lake  is  still  well  stocked  with  fish  ;  this  it  is  easy  to  prove  by  the 
bad  taste  of  its  waters. 

*  The  expression  "Children,"  so  often  used  in  the  East  in  token  of 
friendliness,  would  not  have  undeceived  the  Apostles,  and  the  distance 
prevented  them  from  recognizing  the  tones  of  that  well-known  voice. 


368      THE  PAss/ OA   AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

snatched  his  coat1  and  girt  it  about  him  (for  during  the 
work  he  had  thrown  off  his  outer  garments),  and,  thai  he 
might  rejoin  the  Master  sooner,  sprang  into  the  lake. 
The  other  disciples  followed  in  the  boat,  dragging  the  net2 
with  them  toward  shore,  which  was  now  only  about  two 
hundred  cubits  distant.3 

So  soon,  then,  as  they  had  stepped  foot  on  land,  they  saw 
a  fire  of  lighted  coals  with  a  fish  laid  thereon,  and  bread. 

"  Bring  hither  some  of  the  fishes  which  you  have 
caught,"  Jesus  said  to  them. 

Simon  Peter  again  got  into  the  boat  and  hauled  the  net 
to  land,  now  filled  full  with  an  hundred  and  fifty-three 
great  fishes  ;  and  although  there  were  so  many,  the  net 
was  not  broken. 

"  Come  !  "  then  said  Jesus  ;  "  come,  eat ! " 

The  disciples  sat  down  around  the  fire ;  then  the  Mas- 
ter stepping  forward,  took  up  the  bread  and  the  meats, 
and  passed  them  about  among  them. 

Thus,  then,  the  Apostles  found  themselves  once  more  in 
the  same  familiar  spot  and  at  the  Master's  side,  just  as  for- 
merly, when  in  the  olden  days,  after  long  hours  of  teach- 
ing and  preaching,  He  would  take  them  off  by  themselves, 
and  explain  to  them  the  hidden  meaning  of  His  public 
discourses.  But  there  could  be  no  longer  on  their  part  the 
same  free  fellowship,  for  now  more  than  erstwhile  He 
might  well  say  that  "He  was  no  longer  of  this  world."4 
This  thought,  the  very  sight  of  their  Eesurrected  Lord, 
overwhelmed  the  minds  of  all  present,  ami  this  morning's 
meal5  was  finished  in  silence. 

1  The  iirevovTt)^  is,  according  to  Theophylactus  and  Nonnus,  a  smock- 
frock  made  of  cloth,  famished  with  pockets,  which  workmen  and  fisher- 
men especially  wore  under  their  tunic.  Enthymius  adds  thai  this  garment 
was  armless,  and  reached  as  Car  as  the  knees. 

-  By  the  word  triptw,  to  drag,  S.  John  indicates  that  the  Apostles  tied 
the  net  to  the  hoar  and  tugged  it  by  pulling  on  their  oars  shorewards ; 
when,  afterwards,  he  tells  how  Peter  and  las  companions  hauled  the  net 
out  of  the  water,  he  employs  the  word  iXuveiv  (Trench,  Synonyms  of  the 
New  Testament,  xxi). 

3  Two  hundred  cubits  make  one  half  a  stadium,  one  hundred  metres. 

4  John  xvii.  11. 

5  The  significance  of  the  word  &parrov  has  altered  ;  hut,  although  in  the 
time  of  Jesus  this  word  oftener  referred  to  the  meal  eaten  about  noon,  it 


APPEARING  TO  HIS  DISCIPLES  IN  GALILEE.     369 

Hardly  had  it  come  to  an  end,  when  Jesus  turned 
toward  Peter. 

"  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,"  He  said  to  him,  "  lovest  thou l 
Me  more  than  these  ?  " 

"  More  than  these  ? "  what  a  reproach  for  the  Apostle, 
ever  mindful  of  his  presumptuous  boast, — 

"  Even  though  all  should  deny  Thee,  yet  not  I !  " 

Simon  understood,  —  in  Jesus'  eyes  he  seemed  now  only 
the  son  of  Jonas ;  "  Peter  "  and  the  firmness  once  foreto- 
kened by  that  name,  had  disappeared.  Thinking  thus,  he 
bowed  his  head  in  grief. 

"  Lord,"  he  said  humbly,  "  Thou  knowest  that  I  love 
Thee." 

"  Feed  My  lambs,"  replied  Jesus,  confirming  him  in  his 
functions  as  the  Shepherd  of  souls. 

But  for  a  power  so  lofty  as  this,  there  must  needs  be 
assured  and  solid  foundations ;  wherefore  Jesus  again 
sounded  the  depths  of  Peter's  heart. 

"  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,"  He  repeated,  "  lovest  thou  Me  ?" 

This  time  the  Master  spared  His  Apostle  any  further 
comparison  with  his  brethren,  nor  did  He  make  allusion  to 
his  fall.     And  Peter  humbly  bowed  his  head  once  more : 

"  Lord,"  he  reiterated,  "  Thou  knowest  that  I  love  Thee/' 

may  also  have  had  the  meaning  of  a  morning  meal  (Athenens,  Deipnoso- 
phistce,  lib.  i.  p.  2,  sect.  19). 

1  Our  tongue  is  powerless  to  convey  the  force  of  the  Greek  text  used  in 
these  three  questions  of  the  Saviour.  In  the  first  Jesus  makes  use  of  the 
word  :  ayawq.s  fie  ;  Peter  replies  :  <f>i\(b  <re  .  'AY<z7ras  is  repeated  in  the  sec- 
ond question,  and  0i\w  <re  in  Peter's  response.  In  the  third  Jesus  employs 
the  Apostle's  word  :  </>i\as ;  0i\w  <re  answers  Peter  again.  These  expres- 
sions are  not  set  down  hap-hazard.  'A7a7rui  denotes  the  respectful  love 
we  bear  toward  that  which  is  above  us,  toward  whatever  we  venerate  and 
love  at  the  same  time  (Dionysius  Cassius  xliv.  48  ;  Xenophon,  Memora- 
bilia, ii  7,  9,  12).  Scripture  commands  man  ayawav  rbv  Qeov,  never  <pi\eiv 
Him  (Matt.  xxii.  37  ;  Luke  x.  27  ;  1  Cor.  viii.  3).  $ihG>  rather  refers  to 
natural  feeling ;  where  the  passions  and  the  senses  are  more  in  question 
than  the  elevated  powers  of  the  soul.  Nor  is  there  any  reason  to  hesitate 
when  it  is  objected  that  the  Aramean  language  spoken  by  Jesus  may  not 
have  had  any  words  answering  to  the  Greek  terms  employed  by  S.  John  ; 
for  the  Evangelist's  object  in  choosing  these  expressions  is  simply  to  trans- 
late the  conversation  between  Jesus  and  Peter  as  faithfully  as  possible. 
Hence  we  may  rest  assured  that,  in  default  of  the  actual  words  used  by 
them,  we  have  at  least  their  thought  in  its  full  import. 

vol.  ii.  —  24 


370      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Then,  as  though  the  greater  the  trial,  so  much  the  more 
of  confidence  could  be  placed  in  his  humility,  Jesus  said 
once  more :  — 

"  Guard  My  young  sheep," 1  thereby  committing  to  his 
charge,  no  longer  the  lambs  of  the  fold  only,  but  the 
maturer  portion  of  the  Hock  as  well,  whom  henceforth  he 
must  needs  both  pasture  and  lead  onward  and  defend  from 
every  danger.2 

But  a  third  protestation  of  his  sincerity  was  requisite  to 
complete  the  expiation  of  Peter's  threefold  denial. 

"  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,"  his  Master  demanded  once  again, 
"lovestthouMe?" 

Jesus  no  longer  asked  the  Apostle  whether  he  adored 
Him  as  his  God,  but  whether  he  loved  Him  passionately 
with  the  real  warmth  of  charity. 

Grieved  at  heart  to  hear  Jesus  still  questioning  him  thus 
for  the  third  time,  Peter  was  sadly  troubled.  Yet  having 
learned  at  last  to  distrust  his  own  strength,  he  threw  him- 
self upon  the  tender  mercy  of  Him  Who  searcheth  the 
reins  and  the  hearts. 

"  Lord,"  he  cried,  "  Thou  knowest  all  things ;  Thou 
knowest  that  I  love  Thee ! " 

Thenceforth  the  humility  of  the  son  of  Jonas  was 
proven  beyond  doubt,  and  his  love  accounted  worthy  of 
the  highest  favors  of  God.  "Wherefore  one  last  sentence 
from  the  lips  of  Jesus  made  him  once  for  all  the  infallible 

1  Tlpopdna  (Podex  Vaticanus  et  Ephrsemi).  In  the  Eeceived  Text  we 
read  :  in  verso  lf>,  dp-da  ;  in  the  lfith  and  17th,  wpopara.  The  natural  gra- 
dation would  he  dpvla,  Trpopdrta,  Trpopara,  adopted  by  S.  Ambrose:  "Et 
jam  non  agnos,  nee  ovieulas,  sed  oves  pascere  jubetur"  (mi  /.?"'.  x.  176). 
The  Peshito,  precise  as  ever,  makes  a  similar  distinction  between  each  of 
these  words,  and  the  Author  of  the  Vulgate  must  have  read  some  analogous 
text,  for  he  comes  very  near  this  gradation  :  agnos,  agnos,  oves;  it  is 
plain,  at  all  events,  that  he  is  not  translating  the  received  Greek  text. 
Teschendorf  adopts  dpvla,  irpofidria,  Trpofidria.  If  ill  the  third  reply  we 
take  the  reading  Trpfyiara  which  we  find  in  the  MSS.  of  Sinai'  and  Beza,  it 
will  be  sufficient  to  reestablish  an  entirely  satisfactory  order  in  the  sacred 
text. 

2  Uolfiaive  (John  xxi.  16).  This  differs  from  /36o7ce  (xxi.  15)  which  de- 
notes simply  :  "Feed,  give  nourishment :"  irolpawe  embraces  all  the  cares 
which  a  watchful  shepherd  bestows  on  his  flock,  guiding  it,  guarding  it 
from  all  danger,  watching  over  it  with  tireless  vigilance. 


APPEARING  TO  HIS  DISCIPLES  IN  GALILEE.       371 

Teacher,  the  Judge  from  whom  there  is  no  appeal,  the 
supreme  Shepherd  of  the  Church.1 

"  Feed  My  sheep,"  Jesus  saith ;  no  longer  the  lambs 
only,  but  "  both  the  lambs  and  the  sheep,  —  the  mothers 
as  well  as  their  little  ones,  and  the  pastors  likewise,  shep- 
herds as  regards  their  own  people,  but  sheep  also  in  the 
eyes  of  Peter."2  And  these  sheep,  these  pastors  of  the 
nations,  must  receive  all  things  from  the  Prince  of  the 
Apostles;  from  him.  they  must  obtain  jurisdiction,  power, 
doctrine.  In  a  word,  all  that  Jesus  had  been  to  them 
hitherto  Peter  hereafter  was  to  be,  and,  according  to  the 
expression  consecrated  by  centuries  of  faith,  was  even  now 
become  the  Vicar  of  Christ  on  earth.  Yet  truly  this  com- 
mission was  dear-bought ;  for  to  walk  in  the  likeness  of 
Jesus  it  would  be  necessary  for  the  Apostle  to  make  his 
life  the  reflection  of  his  Master's  sufferings,  and  carry  the 
imitation  of  his  Model  even  unto  the  death  of  the  Cross. 

"  Of  a  truth,  of  a  truth,  I  say  to  thee,"  added  the  Lord, 
"  when  thou  wast  young  thou  didst  gird  thine  own  self,3 
and  didst  walk  whither  thou  wouldst ;  but  when  thou  shalt 
be  old  thou  shalt  stretch  forth  thy  hands,  and  another  shall 
gird  thee,  and  lead  thee  whither  thou  wouldest  not."  4 

By  these  words,  Saint  John  says,  He  meant  to  refer  to 
the  death  whereby  Peter  "  was  to  glorify  God ; "  while  at 
the  same  time  they  represented  the  entire  life  of  the 
Apostle,  —  his  fiery  spirit  in  youth,  eager  to  plunge  into 
action,  yet  only  on  condition  that  he  be  allowed  to  gird 
his  loins  at  his  own  good  time  and  pleasure ;  then  his 
riper  age,  destined  to  endure  the  heaviest  toils,  wherein  he 
would  be  required  to  renounce  himself  altogether,  to  suffer 
long  and  patiently,  to  bear  all  contradictions  and  oppro- 
brium ;  finally  his  death  on  the  Cross  after  the  example  of 

1  Concilium  Vaticanum,  Gonstit.  dr.  Ecclcsia,  cap.  ii.,  iii.,  et  iv. 

2  Bossuet,  Sermon  sur  V  Unite  de  VEqlisc,  Ire  partie. 

8  To  gird  one's  loins,  in  Scripture,  signifies  to  make  ready  for  action 
(Exod.  xii.  11  ;  4  Kings  iv.  29  :  Luke  xii.  35  ;  xvii.  8,  etc.). 

4  The  Manuscript  of  Sinai  contains  this  curious  reading  :  "AXXoi  fuxrovaiv 
ere  ko.1  iroi^aovalv  aoi  Sera  ov  diXeis  :  "Others  shall  gird  thee  and  do  unto 
thee  that  which  thou  wouldst  not."  "Tunc  Petrus  ab  altero  cingitur, 
cum  cruci  astringitur"  (Tertullian,  Scorpiace,  15). 


372      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

his  divine  Master.  And  all  this  conformity  to  the  Sa- 
viour's life  and  death  is  comprised  in  that  final  utterance 
of  the  Christ :  — 

"Follow  Me!" 

Having  spoken  thus  He  rose  up  and  withdrew  from  the 
circle  of  the  Apostles.  But  Peter,  accepting  this  bidding 
literally,  walked  close  behind  him.  Nor  was  he  alone ;  the 
disciple  whom  Jesus  loved,  he  who  during  the  Last  Supper 
had  leaned  upon  His  breast  and  said  to  Him :  "  Lord,  who 
will  betray  Thee  ?  "  —  this  disciple  followed  also. 

Peter,  turning  about,  saw  him. 

"  Lord,"  he  asked,  "  and  what  shall  befall  this  one  ? " 

"  If  I  will  that  he  tarry  till  I  come,"  replied  the  Saviour, 
"  what  is  that  to  thee  ?     Do  thou  follow  Me  ! " 

These  last  words  ever  remained  an  enigma  to  the  early 
believers,  and  gave  rise  to  the  strangest  fancies ;  the  say- 
ing soon  spread  abroad  that  the  beloved  of  Jesus  would 
never  die.  John  in  his  extreme  old  age,  seeing  how  great 
credit  had  been  placed  in  this  fabrication,  when  writing 
the  closing  lines  of  his  Gospel  protested  that  the  Lord  hud 
not  said  :  "  He  shall  not  die  ; "  but  "  If  I  will  that  he  tarry 
till  I  come  what  is  that  to  thee  ?"1  But  it  was  useless  for 
the  Apostle  to  try  to  correct  the  popular  misapprehension ; 
even  his  death  and  the  sight  of  his  tomb  could  not  unde- 
ceive them. 

"John  but  sleepeth  in  his  sepulchre,"  they  said;2 
"  there  he  waiteth  the  coming  of  the  Lord,  and  the  clouds 
of  dust  whirling  above  his  grave  bear  testimony  that  a 
living  breath  ever  quickeneth  his  ashes."3 

1  These  mysterious  words  signify  that  John  was  not  to  die  before  seeing 
the  Son  of  Man  returning  to  His  Kingdom  and  manifesting  His  power  by 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  And  in  fact,  he  alone,  of  all  the  Twelve, 
survived  the  ruin  of  the  Jewish  nation,  and  alone  beheld  how  upon  the 
wrecks  of  the  ancient  Covenant,  the  Lord  vouchsafed  to  establish  His 
Church.  This  is  the  interpretation  given  by  Theophylactus,  Suarez,  etc.  ; 
S.  Augustine,  Bede,  Maldonatus  understand  these  words  to  mean  "till 
that  1  come"  in  the  sense  of  "until  I  call  him  to  Myself  by  a  sweet  and 
natural  death." 

2  S.  Augustine,  in  Joan.,  cxxiv.  2. 

8  Grotius  was  the  first  to  raise  some  suspicions  as  to  the  authenticity  of 
this  last  chapter  of  S.  John  ;  he  looks  upon  it  as  an  addition  composed  by 


APPEARING  TO  HIS  DISCIPLES  IN  GALILEE.      37o 

All  that  was  now  left  the  Saviour  to  do  on  earth  was  the 
fulfilment  of  His  promise  that  He  would  manifest  Himself 
to  all  His  disciples  assembled  together.1  For  the  holding 
of  this  first  Council  of  all  Christendom  He  had  designated 
a  certain  mountain  ;2  and  here  were  gathered  not  only  the 
eleven  Apostles,  but  all  that  Jerusalem,  Judea,  and  Gali- 
lee could  furnish  forth  of  faithful  followers,  because  the 
Lord's  message  had  been  addressed  to  the  whole  body  of 
disciples :  — 

"  Go  and  tell  My  brethren  to  go  into  Galilee ;  't  is  there 
they  shall  see  Me  !  "  3 

From  Saint  Paul's  testimony  we  have  it  that  more  than 
five  hundred  were  there  met  together.4 

When  Jesus  appeared  the  Apostles  fell  down  before  Him, 
but  even  in  that  congregation  there  was  a  movement  of 
hesitation  and  "some5  doubted."     Neither  the  Voice  from 

the  Elders  of  the  Church  of  Ephesus,  in  order  to  record  a  story  which  they 
had  inherited  from  their  holy  Apostle.  Whatever  support  this  theory  may 
have  obtained  from  its  partisans,  there  is  nothing  to  give  it  authority,  since 
the  most  important  Manuscripts  and  Versions  contain  this  chapter,  while 
the  style  of  its  Author  is  easily  recognized  throughout.  All  that  could 
possibly  be  conceded  would  be  that  it  may  have  been  added  afterwards  by 
S.  John  himself,  in  order  to  contradict  the  false  interpretation  alluded  to 
above  (Corluy,  Commentarius  in  Joannem,  cap.  xxi.,  qusestio  prsevia). 
And  further,  the  authenticity  of  this  chapter  has  been  defended  by  very 
many  Protestant  scholars,  Eichhorn,  Kuinoel,  Tholuck,  Olshausen,  Klee, 
Lutliardt,  Lange,  Hengstenberg,  Ebrard  (see  Trench,  Notes  on  the  Miracles, 
p.  480). 

i  Matt,  xxviii.  16-20. 

2  Tabor,  according  to  the  opinion  of  S.  Bonaventure  and  Denis  the 
Carthusian ;  or,  even  more  likely,  one  of  the  hills  which  surround  Lake 
Genesareth,  —  the  Mount  of  Beatitudes,  for  instance,  whither  there  were 
so  many  tender  memories  to  attract  Him. 

3  Matt,  xxviii.  10. 

4  S.  Matthew,  it  is  true,  speaks  of  the  eleven  only,  but  evidently  we 
are  to  infer  the  presence  of  those  disciples  to  whom  this  mountain  had 
been  pointed  out  as  the  place  for  their  reunion.  Otherwise  how  are  we  to 
explain  the  incredulity  of  so  many  ?  Can  we  suppose  that  the  Apostles 
could  still  doubt  after  the  Apparitions  which  they  had  already  witnessed  ? 
Hence  they  were  not  alone  upon  the  mountain,  and  the  solemnity  of  this 
Manifestation  warrants  us  in  believing  that  it  i;s  the  one  to  which  S.  Paul 
alludes  in  the  First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  (xv.  6).  See,  in  support  of 
this,  Cornelius  a  Lapide,  in  loco. 

5  Kal  Idovres  avrbv  ■KpoaeKvvqcrav,  o'l  5i  idiaTaaav  (Matt,  xxviii.  17). 
We  translate  o'l  8£  by  some  ;  indeed,  the  suppression  of  fxiv  in  the  first 
member  of  the  sentence  denotes  that  the  action  expressed  by  this  proposi* 


874      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OE  JESUS. 

Heaven  which  had  summoned  them  thitherwards,  nor  the 
sight  of  the  Apostles  worshipping  the  Master,  could  chase 
away  the  trouble  which  filled  their  souls  at  witnessing  this 
Apparition.  Still  they  remained  standing,  speechless,  not 
during  to  believe  their  eyes. 

Jesus  came  forward  to  this  unxious  flock. 

"  All  power,"  He  said,  "  hath  been  given  Me  in  Heaven 
and  upon  earth.  Go,  then,  and  teach  all  nations,  baptizing 
them  in  the  name  of  the  Father  and  of  the  Son  and  of  the 
Holy  Ghost.  Teach  them  to  keep  all  things  that  I  have 
commanded  you,  and  lo!  1  am  with  you  all  days,  even  to 
the  consummation  of  the  ages." 

And  it  was  not  only  unto  men,  but  "  to  every  creature  " 1 
He  sent  them  forth,  thus  to  be  the  bearers  of  the  Good 
News;  for  "all  creation/'  fallen  with  Adam,  "groaneth 
and  travaileth  in  pain  together." 2  Jesus  had  forgotten 
nothing  He  had  made;  extending  the  redemption  bought 
for  them  by  the  Cross  unto  every  created  thing,  He  held 
forth  hope  and  peace  for  all  in  His  overflowing  hands. 
Saint  Mark's  account  shows  us  how  that  regeneration  is 
consummated  by  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel,  — devils  fly- 
ing before  the  very  Name  of  Jesus,  serpents  and  poison 
powerless  to  injure  the  Apostles,  every  ailment  disappear- 
ing at  the  laying  on  of  their  hands. 

"  Go  into  all  "the  world  and  preach  the  Glad  Tidings. 
He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved ;  but  he 
that  believeth  not  shall  be  condemned.3  And  behold  the 
signs  which  shall  follow  them  that  believe :  They  shall 
cast  out  devils  in  My  Name ;  they  shall  speak  with  new 
tongues,  they  shall  take  up4  serpents"  without  fear  of 

tion  is  so  general  that  the  second  member  of  the  phrase  only  refers  to  a  few 
rare  exceptions  (see  Winer,  Grammatik,  §  17,  2). 
i  Mark  xvi.  15-18. 

2  Rom.  viii.  22. 

3  Neither  is  faith  without  baptism  sufficient,  nor  baptism  without  faith. 
This  virtue,  nevertheless,  is  of  a  more  absolute  necessity  than  that  Sacra- 
ment, and  alone  indeed  may  save  a  man,  when  baptismal  ablution  is  im- 
possible. This  Jesus  declares  plainly  by  not  adding  in  the  second  member 
of  the  sentence  :  "  He  who  is  not  baptized  shall  be  condemned." 

i'Apovcriv  may  mean  either:  "They  shall  take  serpents  into  their 
hands,"  or:  "They  shall  destroy  them."     The  first  sense  seems  more  in 


THE  ASCENSION.  375 

their  venom,  "  and  if  they  drink  any  deadly  thing  it  shall 
in  no  wise  hurt  them;  they  shall  lay  their  hands  upon  the 
sick,  and  the  sick  folk  shall  recover." 

This  appearance  was  but  one  of  very  many  Manifesta- 
tions which  Jesus  made  of  Himself  during  these  clays.1 
We  know,  likewise,  that  He  showed  Himself  to  James, 
"  the  brother  of  the  Lord."  2  Unfortunately  the  memory 
of  what  occurred  at  this  event  soon  came  to  be  distorted 
and  finally  grew  into  the  legend  which  Saint  Jerome  read 
in  the  "  Gospel  of  the  Nazarencs."  3 

"  James,  the  first  Bishop  of  Jerusalem,  did  make  an  oath 
after  the  Last  Supper,  neither  to  eat  nor  to  drink  aught 
until  he  beheld  Jesus  risen  again  from  the  dead.  On  the 
morning  of  the  day  of  the  Resurrection,  a  table  appeared 
before  him  furnished  with  food ;  and  the  Lord  blessed  the 
bread  and  gave  it  to  James,  saying :  '  Eat  of  this  bread 
now,  My  brother,  for  the  Son  of  Man  is  risen  from  the 
dead.' " 

II.  The  Ascension. 

Acts  i.  3-12  ;  Luke  xxiv.  44-53  ;  Mark  xvi.  19,  20. 

Forty  days  had  elapsed  since  the  Resurrection ;  the 
time  had  come  for  Jesus  to  leave  the  earth.  Whether 
warned  by  their  Master,  or  perchance  drawn  thither  by  the 
Feast  of  Pentecost,  the  Apostles  returned  to  Jerusalem, 
and  there  He  gathered  them  about  Him  once  more,  proba- 
bly in  the  hallowed  Supper-Room.4  For  the  last  time  He 
took  His  place  at  the  table  consecrated  by  the  Eucharistic 

harmony  with  the  general  meaning  of  the  words  of  Jesus,  who  is  describing 
the  marvels  of  His  new  Reign  and  reminding  them  of  that  prophecy  of 
Isaias  :  "The  child  shall  play  upon  the  hole  of  the  serpent,  and  the  nurs- 
ling stretch  out  its  hand  to  the  viper  without  fear"  (Is.  xi.  8). 

1  Acts  i.  3.  "Jesus  did  also,  in  presence  of  His  disciples,  many 
other  miracles  which  are  not  written  in  this  book  ;  but  these  are  written 
that  you  may  believe  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  and  that, 
by  believing  you  may  have  life  by  His  Name  "  (John  xx.  30,  31). 

2  1  Cor.  xv.  7. 

3  3„  Jerome,  De  Viris  fflustribus,  ii. 

4  Acts  i.  4,  5. 


376      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

Banquet,  and  "  while  eating  with  them,1  lie  bade  them  not 
to  leave  Jerusalem,  but  to  await  the  Father's  promise." 

"Even  that  which  you  have  heard,"  saith  He,  "from  My 
mouth  ;  for  John  baptized  with  water,  but  before  many 
days  hence  you  shall  be  baptized  with  the  Holy  Spirit." 

"  Behold!"2  He  added,  "  the  fulfilment  of  that  whereof 
I  told  you  while  I  was  still  with  you ;  but  it  must  needs 
be  that  all  things  which  have  been  written  of  Me,  whether 
in  the  Law  of  Moses  or  in  the  Prophets,  or  in  the  Psalms,3 
should  be  accomplished."  And,  even  as  He  spoke,  He 
opened  their  minds,  that  they  might  understand  the  Scrip- 
tures ;  when  He  added  :  — 

"  Look  !  thus  it  is  written  :  It  must  needs  be  that  the 
Christ  should  suffer,  should  rise  again  from  among  the 
dead  on  the  third  day,  and  that  so  penance  and  remission 
of  sins  in  His  Name  be  preached  throughout  the  whole 
world,  beginning  at  Jerusalem.  And  you  indeed  are  wit- 
nesses of  these  things.     I  will  send  the  Gift  which  My 

1  ^wa\i£6fi€i>os  is  not  in  the  middle  voice,  nor  does  it  mean  "re- 
assembling His  disciples,"  as  Calvin,  Grotius,  Olshausen,  etc.,  would  have 
it.  It  is  the  passive  participle,  and  Hesyehius  translates  it  by  avva\ia6eis, 
ffvvaxOeh,  awaOpoiaOeis  :  "  being  in  the  midst  of  them  "  or  more  probably  : 
"  taking  this  last  meal  with  them,"  "convescens"  (Vulgate).  This  inter- 
pretation of  the  Vulgate  is  likewise  given  in  the  Syriac,  Armenian,  and 
Ethiopian  Versions,  by  S.  John  Chrysostom,  etc. 

2  At  first  sight,  verse  44  of  chapter  xxiv.  in  S.  Luke  seems  to  be  a 
continuation  of  the  scene  described  in  the  foregoing  verses,  which  took 
place  on  the  evening  of  the  Resurrection  ;  but  as  the  conclusion  of  the  dis- 
course is  the  command  whereby  He  bade  the  Apostles  remain  in  Jerusalem 
until  the  Day  of  Pentecost,  and  as  immediately  afterwards  the  Saviour  rose 
up  into  Heaven,  it  certainly  seems  more  natural  to  regard  these  words  as 
addressed  to  the  Apostles  immediately  before  the  Ascension.  Furthermore, 
this  last  chapter  of  S.  Luke  cannot  be  separated  from  the  fuller  recital 
which  the  Evangelist  has  placed  at  the  opening  of  the  Acts  ;  now  it  is 
enough  for  us  to  compare  these  two  testimonies  in  order  to  feel  convinced 
that,  in  the  belief  of  the  sacred  Historian  at  least,  Jesus,  after  having  ap- 
peared frequently  during  the  forty  days  (Acts  i.  3),  gathered  His  Apostles 
together  one  last  time  (Acts  i.  4),  and  that  it  was  during  this  final  con- 
verse that  He  hade  them  not  to  leave  Jerusalem.  And  although  in  the 
Acts  this  discourse  is  only  referred  to  by  a  passing  word,  it  is  however 
more  fully  recorded  at  the  end  of  the  third  Gospel  (Luke  xxiv.  44— 4i>). 

3  'Ei>  itdfjup  Kai  irpo<pr)Tais  kclI  \pa\/j.ois.  In  the  time  of  our  Lord  the  books 
of  the  Old  Testament  were  already  divided  into  three  classes,  and  the  order 
here  indicated  by  S.  Luke  is  still  retained  iu  the  Hebraic  Bibles  (Prologue 
of  Ecclesiasticus). 


THE  ASCENSION.  377 

Father  bath  promised  you ;  but  do  you  abide  in  the  city 
till  you  be  eudued  with  strength  from  on  high." 

Then  Jesus  rose  up  and  walked  toward  the  Mount  of 
Olives.  The  Apostles  followed,  filled  with  brighter  dreams 
of  glory  and  earthly  happiness  than  ever  before  ;  for  the 
sight  of  the  risen  Lord  proceeding  before  them  rekindled 
all  their  old-time  hopes.  They  began  to  believe  that  even 
now  the  moment  so  long  expected  when  they  were  to  tri- 
umph with  the  Christ  had  come  at  last,  and  pressing- 
nearer  they  ventured  to  cpuestiou  Him. 

"  Master,"  they  asked,  "  wilt  Thou  even  now  restore  again 
the  Sovereignty  of  Israel  ?  " 

Once  more  and  for  the  last  time,  the  Saviour  checked 
the  surging  ambitions  of  His  children,  and  renewed  His 
former  commandment  for  them  to  await  the  coming  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  that  so  they  might  carry  the  Gospel  tidings 
unto  the  whole  wide  world. 

"  It  is  not  for  you,"  He  told  them,  "to  know  the  times 
and  the  moments  which  the  Father  hath  put  in  His  own 
power,  but  you  shall  receive  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
which  shall  descend  upon  you,  and  you  shall  be  My  wit- 
nesses at  Jerusalem,  in  all  Judea  and  Samaria,  and  even  to 
the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth." 

Even  Samaria,  —  that  land  of  drunkenness  and  falsehood 
to  the  mind  of  all  Jewry  ?  Nay,  the  whole  wide  world, 
howsoever  contaminated  by  contact  with  accursed  Heath- 
endom, was  to  become  the  Kingdom  of  Jesus  !  Whereupon 
the  Apostles  realized  that  this  was  not  the  time  to  question 
the  Master,  and  they  walked  on  in  silence. 

Now  they  were  come  to  the  brow  of  a  hill  which  marks 
the  outskirts  of  Bethany1  and  the  outer  limits  of  Jerusa- 
lem. There  Jesus  stood  still,  and  lifting  up  His  hands  He 
began  to  bless  His  Apostles.     And  behold  !  while  blessing 

1  Luke  xxiv.  50.  Better  than  the  reading  ets  HrjOaviav  we  think  is  the 
other  lection  :  irpos  ~Bi]6aviav  (Codex  Sinaiticus,  Bezse),  "toward  Bethany." 
Indeed  Jesus  did  not  go  as  far  as  that  village ;  for,  taking  the  evidence  of 
the  Acts,  the  Apostles  on  their  return  from  the  Mount  of  Olives  had  to 
traverse  "so  much  of  the  road  as  one  may  make  upon  the  Sabbath  day" 
(1,200  metres).  (Acts  i.  12.)  Now  Bethany  is  about  3,000  metres  from 
Jerusalem  (John  xi.  18). 


378      THE  PASSION  AND  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS. 

them,   He  was  raised  up  above  the   mountain-tops.1     A 

cloud  caught  Him  away  out  of  their  sight,  and  He  disap- 
peared into  the  blue  depths  of  the  sky. 

The  disciples  lingered  awe-struck  and  overwhelmed  with 
glad  wonderment,  when  all  at  once  two  Angels  formed  like 
unto  men,  arrayed  in  garments  of  surpassing  whiteness, 
stood  at  their  side.2 

"  Men  of  Galilee,"  they  also  said,  "  why  do  you  still  lin- 
ger here  gazing  up  into  the  sky?  This  Jesus  Who  hath 
left  you  to  ascend  into  Heaven  shall  likewise  descend  as 
you  have  beheld  Him  going  up  thither." 

These  voids  recalled  to  the  Apostles'  minds  the  promise 
of  their  Lord,  "  that  He  would  not  leave  them  orphans,  but 
would  return  shortly  to  take  them  with  Him."3  "Then 
having  adored  Him,  they  returned  filled  with  great  joy  to 
Jerusalem,  and  they  were  without  ceasing  in  the  Temple, 
praising  and  blessing  God."4 

1  Luke  xxiv.  50,  51  ;  Acts  i.  9  ;  Mark  xvi.  19.  The  Scriptures  do  not 
declare  in  so  many  words  that  the  Ascension  took  place  upon  the  Mount  of 
Olives,  but  we  are  left  to  infer  as  much  from  the  Book  of  the  Acts  (i.  12). 
All  the  traditions  go  to  confirm  S.  Luke's  testimony,  and,  at  the  very  lie- 
ginning  of  the  fourth  century  Saint  Helena  erected  a  sanctuary  upon  the 
summit  of  the  mountain  where  the  Christians  had  for  so  long  revered  this 
mystery  of  the  Ascension  of  Jesus  into  Heaven  (Eusebius,  Vita  Constantini, 
iii.  41  ;  Demonstratio  Evangclica,  vi.  18). 

2  Acts  i.  10,  11. 

3  John  xiv.  18. 

4  Acts  i.  12  ;  Luke  xxiv.  52,  53. 


^Testis,  mp  Jkabiour  anb  mi)  (£5ob,  ©,  bless  tbis  boon  mbtcb 
speaks  of  ©bee.  herein  1  bane  but  strinen  to  picture  the  out- 
toarb  features  of  Chp  Life ;  the  rtrb  treasures  of  trutb  anb  lobe 
IjitittzTi  tnifym  ©&ec,  ©bp  birtues  anb  all  Cbine  inner  life  mere 
sttbierts  too  eraltcb  for  mp  bumble  efforts;  but  tbat  robirb  £ 
mas  unable  to  bo,  bo  ©bou,  ©  iDibtne  jflaster,  perfect  in  mp 
steab.  Inspire  all  sucb  as  map  reab  tbese  pages  roitb  a  long; 
tng:  to  lap  tbem  asibc  for  ©bp  ©ospcl;  <&,  map  it  bdp  tljem 
hereafter  to  mebitate  on  ©hp  life  as  (&})v  faints  babe  eber 
bone,  until  tohat  time  tbep  too  sball  ftnb  ©hee  therein, —  ©bp- 
self,  enen  as  3Tohn  anb  jttag;balcne  nnem  anb  lobeb  Cbee,  eben 
as  Peter  founb  anb  roorsbippeb  ©bee,  repealing  unto  tbe  roorlb 
t&e  toorbs  of  eternal  life:  "iorb,  unto  inborn  sball  me  p? 
©hou  bast  tbe  morbs  of  (Eternal  life," 


APPENDIX, 


RATA    MANNHN. 

8'.  X',  Xa'. 

IloXXa  /xev  ovv  koll  aXXa  ar^ieta,  a  iTroi-qaev  6  'Irjcrovs  cvwttlov 
tw  fAadrjT&v  olvtov,  a  ovk  ecrriv  yeypa^fxiva  iv  tu  /3i/?Xi'w  tovtio  • 
ravra  8e  yeypmrrai,  tVa  7rtcrT€ij^Te  on  6  'lrjaovs  early  'O  XPI2T02 
'O  YI02  TOY  0EOY,  /ecu  Iva  ttio-tcuovtcs  £wr)v  ex??T€  ev  t<3  'Oi'o- 
fxaTi  avTov. 


€f)c  <£toangdi£t£'  €e£timonp. 


Many  other  signs  also  did  Jesus  in  the  sight  of  His 
disciples,  which  are  not  written  in  this  Book  ;  hut  these  are 
written  that  you  may  believe  that  Jesus  is  THE  CHRIST, 
THE  SON  OF  GOD:  and  that  believing  you  may  have 
life  in  His  Name. 

SAINT  JOHN 
xx.  30,  31. 


APPENDIX. 


IX. 

HARMONY     OF     THE    GOSPEL     NARRATIVES     IN    THE    LAST     TEAR    OP 
THE     SAVIOUR'S     LIFE. 

The  sequence  of  events  between  the  Transfiguration  and  the 
last  journey  which  Jesus  made  to  Jerusalem,  is  one  of  the  ques- 
tions most  widely  discussed  by  students  of  the  Gospel. 

Saint  Matthew  and  Saint  Mark  pass  over  this  whole  period 
in  silence ;  so  our  only  difficulty,  though  it  is  indeed  a  serious 
one,  is  how  to  harmonize  Saint  Luke's  account  with  that  of 
Saint  John. 

The  latter  Evangelist,  while  not  mentioning  the  Transfigura- 
tion, informs  us  however  that  Jesus  went  up  in  September  to 
attend  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  (John  vii.  2),  and  that  imme- 
diately afterwards  He  retired  into  Perea1  (John  x.  40);  that 
He  returned  to  Jerusalem  for  the  Feast  of  the  Dedication  (John 
x.  22),  and  then  went  back  again  over  beyond  Jordan  (John 
x.  40)  ;  from  thence  He  was  recalled  to  Bethany  for  the  raising 
of  Lazarus  (John  xi.  11),  departed  thereafter  for  Ephrem  (John 
xi.  54),  and  from  there  started  out  on  His  last  journey  Jeru- 
salemwards  (John  xii.). 

Saint  Luke,  albeit  less  precise  than  Saint  John,  is  much 
fuller  and  more  complete ;  for  his  recital  of  the  events  which 
occurred  at  this  same  time  occupies  nearly  a  third  part  of  his 
whole  Gospel.  After  having  given  an  account  of  the  Transfig- 
uration, like  that  of  the  first  two  Evangelists,  he  takes  up  over 

1  After  having  related  the  incidents  of  the  Feast  of  the  Dedication 
S.  John  adds  that  Jesu3  retired  again  beyond  Jordan  :  airr)\6a>  tt&\iv 
(John  x.  40).  Hence  it  is  only  natural  to  conclude  that  the  Saviour  had 
been  there  at  some  time  previous  to  this  Feast. 


384  APPENDIX. 

seven  chapters  (ix.  51-xvii.  11)  with  incidents  and  parables 
which  are  peculiar  to  his  history,  and  does  nut  proceed  again 
in  harmony  with  Saint  Matthew  and  Saint  Mark  until  he  conies 
to  the  eleventh  verse  of  his  seventeenth  chapter.  "It  hap- 
pened," he  says  at  this  point,  "that  -Jesus,  going  up  to  Jeru- 
salem, passed  through  the  midst  of  Samaria  and  Galilee,"  — 
words  which  evidently  refer  to  the  last  journey  of  the  Christ, 
as  recorded  by  Saint  Matthew  (xix.  1)  and  Saint  Mark  (x.  1). 

In  the  seven  chapters  of  Saint  Luke  alluded  to  above,  we 
have  no  reason  to  suspect  that  the  Evangelist,  so  studious  hith- 
erto about  following  the  chronological  order,  woidd  have  aban- 
doned his  plan  and  all  at  once  have  proceeded  to  report  the 
words  and  deeds  of  the  Lord  x  hap-hazard  ;  everything  leads  us 
to  believe,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  actual  succession  of  events 
is  very  exactly  observed.  Henceforth,  then,  our  only  aim  should 
be  to  glean  from  these  seven  chapters  some  indications  of  timo 
and  place,  and  then  see  if  we  can  make  them  accord  with  the 
preciser  dates  given  by  Saint  John. 

The  first  remark  of  this  sort  we  find  in  Saint  Luke,  after  the 
Transfiguration,  is  this:  "As  the  time  of  His  departure  from 
this  world  was  fulfilled,"  2  says  the  Evangelist,  "  Jesus  stead- 
fastly set  His  face  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem  "  (Luke  ix.  51).  This 
departure  from  Galilee  cannot  be  confounded  with  that  last 
journey  to  Jerusalem,  of  which  Saint  Luke  speaks  later  on,  iu 
the  eleventh  verse  of  his  seventeenth  chapter,  when  telling  us 
that  Jesus  went  up  secretly  to  Jerusalem  for  the  Feast  of  Taber- 
nacles. Saint  Luke  omits  this  solemnity,  but  immediately 
after  this  departure  tor  Jerusalem,  of  which  he  also  makes 
mention  (Luke  ix.  51),  he  describes  Jesus  first  launching  His 
anathema  upon  Capharnaum  (Luke  x.  13)  and  thereupon  putting 
before  his  hearers  the  example  of  the  good  Samaritan  who  cares 
fa-  a  wounded  man  on  the  road  from  Jericho  to  Bethany  (Luke 
x.  30).  The  malediction  of  the  lake  cities  must  have  been  pro- 
nounced when  the  Lord  was  in  the  region  of  Genesareth,  and 
the  Parable  was  undoubtedly  uttered  in  the  neighborhood  to 

1  Although  among  the  numerous  instructions  comprised  in  these  seven 
chapters  of  S.  Luke  some  are  to  be  found  winch  S.  Matthew  reports  at 
another  time,  the  only  conclusions  we  are  warranted  iu  drawing  from  the 
fact  is  either  that  Jesus  repeated  the  same  doctrines  under  different  cir- 
cumstances, which  is  iu  nowise  unlikely,  or  that  the  first  Evangelist,  ac^ 
cording  to  custom,  observes  a  much  less  rigorous  order  than  S.  Luke. 

2  That  is  to  say,  because  the  hour  of  His  death  was  approaching,  for 
then  six  months  lay  between  Him  and  that  event. 


HARMONY  OF  THE   GOSPEL  NARRATIVES.       385 

which  it  makes  its  passing  allusions.  From  these  two  indices 
it  would  certainly  seem  natural  to  conclude  that  Jesus  quitted 
Jerusalem  after  the  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles,  and  went  toward 
Galilee,  where  He  cursed  the  ungrateful  towns,  then  that  He 
started  back  forthwith,  in  order  to  go  down  to  Jericho  and  by 
that  route  reach  Bethany.  Just  so,  in  fact,  at  this  same  time 
Saint  Luke  shows  Him  to  us  stopping  in  the  home  of  Martha 
and  Mary  (Luke  x.  38).  Thereupon  the  Lord  straightway 
retraced  His  steps,  and  according  to  Saint  John's  testimony, 
withdrew  for  the  first  time  into  Perea1  (John  x.  40).  He  soon 
left  this  land  however,  to  ascend  to  the  Holy  City. 

"  He  went  through  the  towns  and  villages,"  says  Saint  Luke, 
"teaching  and  making  His  way  Jerusalemwards"  (Luke  xiii. 
22). 

He  repaired  thither,  adds  Saint  John,  "  to  celebrate  the 
feast  of  the  Jews,  the  Anniversary  of  the  Dedication  "  (John  x. 
22). 

The  latter  Evangelist,  after  relating  the  incidents  of  this 
sojourn,  concludes  thus  :  — 

"And  Jesus  went  away  again  beyond  Jordan"  (John  x.  40). 

It  was  somewhere  in  these  parts  that  He  healed  the  man  sick 
with  dropsy,  and  uttered  the  parables  which  fill  chapters  xiv., 
xv,  xvi.,  and  xvii.  1-10  in  Saint  Luke.  Hereabouts  He 
remained  up  to  the  time  when  the  sisters  of  Lazarus  summoned 
Him  to  Bethany,  to  cure  their  brother  (John  xi.  1)  ;  then  He 
withdrew  again,  this  time  to  Ephreni  (John  xi.  54),  and  there 
abode  till  the  day  when  He  set  forth  on  the  last  journey  re- 
corded by  the  three  Synoptic  Writers  (Matt.  xix.  1 ;  Mark 
x.   1 ;  Luke  xvii.   11). 

Such,  it  would  seem  to  us,  is  the  natural  harmony  existing 
between  Saint  Luke  and  Saint  John ;  of  all  the  hypotheses  so 
far  proposed  for  reconciling  their  accounts,  none  certainly  is 
more  plausible,  for  it  is  based  upon  one  ascertained  fact  at 
least,  —  to  wit,  the  intention  formally  expressed  by  Saint  Luke 
of  following  the  chronological  order  throughout. 

1  Indeed  S.  John,  as  we  have  had  occasion  to  observe,  says  that  Jesus 
was  still  over  beyond  Jordan  before  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles.  This  coun- 
try was  a  part  of  Herod's  domain  ;  hence  the  threats  by  which  the  Phari- 
sees thought  to  hasten  His  departure:  "  Leave  here,"  they  said,  "lor 
Herod  desires  to  put  you  to  death  "  (Luke  xxx.  31). 

vol.  ii.  —  25 


386  APPENDIX. 


THE   CHRONOLOGY    OP   THE    PASSION. 

From  the  testimony  of  all  the  Evangelists  we  know  that  the 
Passion  took  place  in  the  season  of  the  Jewish  Pasch.  But  this 
solemn  Festival  lasted  one  week,  and  began  on  the  eve  of  the 
First  Day.  Out  of  all  this  lung  space  of  time,  which  was  the 
one  hour  chosen  for  the  Crucifixion  1  It  certainly  behoves  us 
to  note  it  carefully,  if  we  wish  to  obtain  any  faithful  description 
of  the  Saviour's  last  moments. 

Of  all  the  questions  that  have  exercised  commentators,  none 
has  been  oftener  agitated  or  more  diversely  solved.  To  uphold 
any  solution  as  definitive,  would  require  considerable  boldness ; 
evidently  we  must  be  contented  with  an  hypothesis  and  only 
try  to  choose  the  likeliest. 

Setting  aside  those  authors  who  are  too  fond  of  their  own 
arbitrary  dicta  to  be  sale  guides,  we  find  that  the  question  is 
simply  one  of  determining  whether  the  Passion  took  place  on 
the  fourteenth  of  Nisan,1  the  eve  of  the  Passover,  or  the  fif- 
teenth of  that  month,  the  first  day  of  the  Feast.  Very  many 
interpreters  of  the  text,  among  others,  Tolet,  Cornelius  a  Lap- 
ide,  Patrizi,  Corluy,  Hengstenberg,  Olshausen,  and  Tholuck, 
have  pronounced  in  favor  of  the  latter  date.  Paul  de  Burgos, 
Jansenius,  Maldonatus,  Petau,  Ilardouin,  Tillemont,  Danck,  and 
others,  have  upheld  the  contraiy  opinion,  and  believe  that  Jesus 
was  crucified  on  the  eve  of  the  Pasch,  on  the  fourteenth  day  of 
Nisan.  Their  theory  seems  founded  upon  such  weighty  reasons 
that  we  do  not  hesitate  to  make  use  of  it. 

Indeed,  all  the  Evangelists  agree  in  calling  the  day  of 
the  Crucifixion,   "the  Parasceve,"  that  is  to  say,  the  Day  of 

1  It  is  hard  to  decide  precisely  what  month  answers  to  the  Jewish  Nisan. 
Our  solar  years  differ  so  entirely  from  their  lunar  years  that  a  more  or  less 
considerable  variation  occurs  between  the  various  months.  In  the  modern 
calendar  of  the  Jews  Nisan  is  equivalent  to  our  month  of  March  ;  but  in 
the  time  of  Jesus  Christ  it  certainly  coincided  with  April  ;  for  the  first 
fruits  of  the  harvest  had  to  be  olFered  on  the  fifteenth  of  this  month,  and 
the  earliest  crops  in  Judea  are  not  ripened  until  the  middle  of  April.  The 
most  exact  correspondence  which  can  be  established  between  the  two  cal- 
endars seems  to  be  as  follows  :  Nisan  =  April  ;  Ijar  =  May  ;  Sivan  =  June  ; 
Thammus  =  July ;  A.b  August  ;  Elul  —  September  ;  Thischri  =  October  ; 
Marcheschwan  =  November  ;  Kisleu  —  December;  Tebeth  =  January; 
Schebat  =  February  ;  Adar  =  March. 


THE   CHRONOLOGY  OF  THE  PASSION.  387 

Preparation.1  This  name  refers  to  Friday,  the  eve  of  the  Sab- 
bath, when  they  prepared  whatever  it  was  impossible  to  procure 
on  the  morrow  without  violating  the  sacred  rest.  But  this  time 
the  eve  of  the  Sabbath  had  a  peculiar  character  of  its  own,  for 
Saint  John  calls  it  the  Parasceve  of  the  Pasch.  Undoubtedly 
we  are  meant  to  understand  by  this,  the  Friday  immediately 
preceding  the  Paschal  solemnity.2  Fmlhermore,  we  know  from 
Fxodus  and  Leviticus3  that  the  lamb,  immolated  at  the  close  of 
the  fourteenth  day  of  Nisan,  must  be  eaten  the  following  night, 
when,  with  the  first  hours  of  the  fifteenth  day,  was  ushered  in 
the  solemn  Feast  of  the  Pasch.  So,  then,  it  is  Friday  and  the 
fourteenth  day  of  Nisan,  which  would  seem  to  he  designated  as 
the  date  of  the  Crucifixion.  Hence  it  follows  that,  as  Jesus 
was  expiring  at  the  moment  when  the  lambs  of  the  Passover 
were  being  immolated  throughout  the  City,  He  must  have  par- 
taken of  the  legal  repast  twenty-four  hours  sooner  than  the 
other  Israelites  ;  but  there  is  no  reason  why  we  should  hesitate 
to  accept  this  conclusion,  for  it  accords  perfectly  with  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Evangelists  and  the  primitive  traditions. 

Beyond  all  the  others,  Saint  John's  wording  is  most  formal 
and  explicit.  "It  was  before  the  Feast,"  he  says,  "that  Jesus, 
knowing  His  hour  was  come,"  4  gave  His  disciples  a  supreme 
token  of  love,  —  that  solemn  festal  Banquet,  —  in  which  it  is 
impossible  not  to  recognize  the  Last  Supper  described  by  the 
Synoptic   Writers.5     Judas,   he  adds,   quitted  their  repast   to 

1  Matt,  xxvii.  62  ;  Mark  xv.  42  ;  Luke  xxiii.  24  ;  John  xix.  13. 

2  It  is  true  that  only  the  three  last  hours  were  consecrated  to  the  immo- 
lation of  the  lamb  ;  hut,  notwithstanding,  the  name  of  "  Preparation  "  was 
extended  to  include  the  entire  day,  which,  according  to  Jewish  usage,  com- 
menced on  the  evening  before  at  six  o'clock  (Pesachim,  i.  1).  This  vigil 
of  the  Pasch  likewise  had  the  name  of  the  "  First  Day  of  the  Azyrbes," 
since  all  leaven  must  be  dispensed  with  on  and  after  the  night  following 
the  thirteenth  of  the  month.  These  religious  preparations  occupied  such 
a  large  part  of  the  clay  that  in  Galilee  all  labor  was  suspended.  The  rest 
of  Judea  did  not  go  as  far  as  this  ;  nevertheless  the  immolation  of  the  lamb 
prescribed  for  the  last  hours  of  the  fourteenth  day,  and  those  words  in 
Numbers  (xxviii.  16)  :  "  In  the  first  month  on  the  fourteenth  day  shall  be 
the  Passover  of  the  Lord,  and  on  the  fifteenth  a  solemn  Feast,"  had  led  the 
Jews  to  regard  the  eve  of  the  Pasch  as  making  part  of  the  Feast,  and  it  is 
in  this  sense  we  must  understand  Josephus  when  that  historian  speaks  of 
the  Passover  lasting  for  eight  days  (Antiquitatcs,  ii.  15). 

3  Exod.  xii.  6-8  ;  Lev/xxiii.  "5,  6. 
*  John  xiii.  1. 

5  Lightfoot  (in  Mat.  xxvi.)  has  endeavored  to  divide  them  into  two  dis. 
tinct  repasts,  but  his  efforts  have  only  resulted  in  distorting  the  meaning 
of  the  text  (Patrizi,  Be  Eoangcliis,  lib.  iii.,  p.  510  et  seq.). 


388  APPENDIX. 

go  and  betray  Jesus,  and  the  disciples  believed  that  lie  went  out, 
at  the  Master's  command,  to  buy  what-  was  requisite  for  the 
Feast.1  Therefore  the  time  for  eating  the  Passover  had  not 
arrived,  for  any  purchase  would  be  a  violation  of  the  repose 
prescribed  by  Law.  A  few  hours  later  on  that  same  day,  Saint 
John  describes  the  Pharisees  as  anxious  to  avoid  any  contami- 
nation, lest  they  should  be  thereby  incapacitated  for  eating  the 
Passover.'2  Finally,  it  is  only  on  the  evening  following  the  Last 
Supper  and  the  death  of  Jesus  that  there  begins  what  the 
Evangelist  calls  "  the  Great  Sabbath,"  3  that  is,  the  Sabbath 
which,  by  its  coincidence  with  the  Pasch,  acquired  an  unwonted 
solemnity.  From  Saint  John's  grouping  of  events,  he  plainly 
indicates  that  the  Last  Supper  preceded  the  legal  hour  of  the 
Faschal  Meal  by  twenty-four  hours. 

The  testimony  of  the  Synoptic  Writers  at  first  sight  may 
appear  less  decisive;  it  might  even  seem  —  taking  only  the 
words  of  the  Apostles  :  "  Master,  where  wilt  Thou  that  we  should 
prepare  the  Passover?"  —  that  this  meant  that  they  were  to 
celebrate  it  together  with  all  Israel ;  but  a  slight  study 
of  the  whole  description  will  su thee  to  convince  us  that  in  the 
Last  Supper  partaken  of  by  Jesus  there  are  certain  character- 
istic and  peculiar  features. 

"  With  a  great  desire  have  I  desired,"  lie  sa}Ts,  "to  eat  this 
Pasch  with  you,  before  the  hour  of  My  sufferings."* 

A  mysterious  host,  warned  beforehand,  has  prepared  the  din- 
ing-room, and  spread  the  mats  and  cushions  for  his  guests  ;  he 
has  everything  in  readiness,  and  Jesus  has  only  to  send  that 
message  :  — 

"  Where  is  the  place  where  I  must  eat  the  Pasch  with  My  dis- 

1  John  xiii.  29. 

2  John  xviii.  28. 

3  John  xix.  31. 

4  Luke  xxii.  15.  "Tins  Passover,  so  greatly  desired  by  the  Son  of 
God,  was  nut  the  legal  Passover  which  was  now  near  its  end,  whereof 
man)'  hold  that  lie  could  not  have  partaken  this  year,  being  Himself 
immolated  at  the  same  time  that  His  people  were  immolating  the  paschal- 
lamb  ;  and  that  in  any  event  He  had  already  eaten  it  with  His  disciples 
many  times,  wherefore  it  could  not  he  the  ultimate  object  of  His  deepest 
yearnings,  and  this  at  the  very  moment  when  it  was  to  he  superseded  by 
the  Cross  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  true  objed  of  the  Saviour's  longings  was 
that  New  Passover  in  His  Body  and  His  lilood  which  He  was  about  to 
bestow  upon  His  disciples,  which  indeed  was  to  be  accomplished  onl]  in 
the  Kingdom  of  His  Father,  when  He  would  he  unto  our  clarified  vision 
the  Life  and  the  Food  oi  all  His  children"  (Bossuet,  Explications  des 
pri&rcs  de  la  rncsse,  xxiii). 


THE   CHRONOLOGY  OF  THE  PASSION.  389 

ciples1?"1  for  "Mine  hour"2  —  not  the  hour  for  all  —  "is 
couie." 

And  Saint  Luke  notes  this  precise  hour  with  great  exactness. 
It  was  just  as  the  First  Day  of  Azymes3  was  drawing  upon  them, 
and  in  the  closing  hours  of  that  day  the  Law  commanded  them 
to  immolate  the  lamb.4  So,  then,  on  Thursday  evening,  the 
thirteenth  of  Nisan,  Jesus  despatched  Peter  and  John  to  pre- 
pare the  Last  Supper;  He  followed  shortly  after  with  the  rest 
of  the  disciples,  and  at  night-fall  sat  down  to  the  Holy  Table. 
Consequently,  according  to  the  Synoptic  Writers,  as  well  as  to 
Saint  John,  we  find  that  this  repast  preceded  that  of  the  other 
Jews  by  twenty-four  hours. 

The  sequel  of  their  narrative  agrees  perfectly  with  this  hy- 
pothesis;  during  this  night  and  all  the  day  following,  we  wit- 
ness a  movement  and  stir,  inexplicable  if  occurring  in  the  very 
midst  of  the  Sacred  Repose  of  the  Paschal  Feast;  armed  Jews 
arrest  Jesus,  drag  Him  from  one  tribunal  to  another;  the  San- 
hedrin  has  no  scruples  about  holding  open  sessions,  summons 
witnesses,  and  pronounces  the  death-sentence.5  It  is  true  that 
no  law  interdicted  the  administration  of  justice  upon  Feast 
Days;  but  the  troublesome  duties,  the  excitement,  and  the  dis- 
plays of  passion  inseparable  from  judicial  processes,  rendered 
all  trials  incompatible  with  the  Sabbatic  Quiet.  The  same  holds 
good  as  regards  the  charge  imposed  upon  Simon  the  Cyi'enean ; 
for  an  edict  of  the  Emperor  Augustus  exempted  the  Jews  from 
every  legal  requisition  on  the  Sabbath  day.6  Finally  we  find, 
after  the  Saviour's  death,  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  an  upright  man 
and  faithful  to  the  Law,  unhesitatingly  buying  a  shroud  to  en- 
wrap Jesus  ; 7  Nicodemus  orders  an  hundred  pounds  of  perfume 

1  Mark  xiv.  14.  2  Matt.  xxvi.  18. 

3  We  have  already  remarked  that  the  Vigil  of  the  Pasch  bore  the  name 
of  the  "  First  Day  of  the  Azymes." 
*  Luke  xxii.  7. 

5  Father  Patrizi  (Dc  Evangcliis,  lib.  iii.  p.  512)  has  tried  to  show  that 
the  Sanhedrin  held  court  upon  feast-days,  but  his  arguments  are  not  con- 
clusive. In  order  to  prove  that  this  usage  existed  he  would  have  to  pro- 
duce some  facts,  some  consistent  witnesses  ;  and  there  are  none  of  the 
kind.  True  it  is  that  the  execution  of  anterior  sentences  seems  to  have 
been  reserved  ordinarily  for  the  great  solemnities,  but  the  Paschal  festivity 
lasted  seven  days,  of  which  only  the  two  first  were  consecrated  by  the 
Sabbatic  Law,  and  there  is  nothing  to  prove  that  this  hallowed  repose 
was  ever  violated  in  order  to  execute  capital  sentences. 

6  Josephus.  Antiquitates,  xxvi.  6,  2. 

7  Luke  xxiii.  50  ;  Mark  xv.  46. 


390  APPENDIX. 

to  be  brought  to  Golgotha ; 1  while  both  make  haste  to  deposit 
the  body  in  a  tomb  near  to  the  Cross,  and  the  reason  Saint  Luke 
oilers  for  this  is  that  the  Day  of  Preparation  was  drawing  to  an 
end,  and  the  Sabbath  was  nigh.3  The  holy  women  were  pres- 
ent too  ;  aud  remarking  with  what  haste  Jesus  had  been 
interred,  they  returned  to  purchase  spices,  with  which  to  em- 
balm with  greater  care  Him  Whom  they  so  revered,  but  dur- 
ing the  Sabbath  they  suspended  their  pious  offices,  and  observed 
the  repose  according  to  the  commandment  of  the  Law.3 

Separately,  these  scraps  of  testimony  in  the  Synoptic  Writers 
would  not  be  sufficient  to  settle  the  question,  but  compared  and 
considered  together,  they  convey  the  same  impression  which  we 
receive  from  Saint  John's  recital,  —  to  wit,  that  Jesus  died  upon 
the  Cross  on  the  fourteenth  day,  about  the  ninth  hour,  in  the 
time  called  the  Parasceve. 

This  was  the  very  moment  when  the  Paschal  lamb,  the  sym- 
bol and  archetype  of  His  own  Immolation,  was  struck  down  in 
the  Temple,  under  the  sacrificial  knife.  This  mystical  conjunc- 
ture united  the  figure  with  the  Reality,  and  mingled  the  blood 
of  Jesus  with  that  of  all  victims  which,  from  the  beginning  of 
time,  had  flowed  in  prefigurement  of  His  sacrifice. 

Saint  Paul  was  deeply  struck  with  this.  "The  Paschal  Vic- 
tim," he  says,  "immolated  for  us  in  that  solemn  hour  was 
Jesus  Christ  ;  let  us  eat.  thereof,  not  with  the  old-time  leaven, 
but  with  the  unleavened  bread  of  truth."  4 

And  Saint  John,  at  sight  of  the  Saviour's  open  side,  and  His 
bones  left  unbroken  at  the  hands  of  the  executioners,  testifies  to 
his  own  admiration  at  the  fact  that  the  very  least  prescriptions 
of  the  Paschal  Ritual  had  been  carried  out  in  Jesus.5  To  him, 
as  to  Saint  Paul,  the  veritable  Lamb  of  this  great  Passover-tide 
was  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God. 

Thus  the  inspired  writers  seem  to  be  unanimous  in  setting 
tbe  Crucifixion  on  the  fourteenth  day  of  Nisan,  and  conse- 
quently, in  distinguishing  between  the  hour  of  the  Last  Supper 
and  that  of  the  legal  Passover.  The  very  earliest  Fathers  have 
interpreted  their  testimony  in  precisely  this  sense. 

Apollinaris,  Bishop  of  Hierapolis,8  who  lived  in  the  latter  part 
of  the  second  century,  regards  it  as  an  error  to  conteud  that 

1  John  xix.  39.  2  Luke  xxiii.  54. 

«  Luke  xxiii.  55.  4  1  Cor.  v.  7. 

6  John  xxix.  30  ;  Exod.  xii.  46. 
6  Migne,  Patrologie  grecgue,  t.  v.  p.  1298. 


THE   CHRONOLOGY  OF  THE  PASSION.  391 

Jesus  ate  the  Passover  on  the  evening  of  the  fourteenth  day, 
and  that  He  died  the  next  day.  Saint  Hippolytus  of  Oporto1 
likewise  teaches  that  Jesus  partook  of  the  Last  Supper  before 
the  legal  time  for  the  Passover.  Clement  of  Alexandria,2  Saint 
Irenseus,8  and  Tertullian,4  are  of  the  same  opinion.  Saint 
Peter  of  Alexandria5  (close  of  the  third  century)  adds  that  at 
this  final  Passover  Jesus  did  not  eat  of  the  lamb  as  He  had 
done  hitherto,  but  that  He  was  Himself  the  true  Lamb,  sacri- 
ficed at  the  very  hour  when  the  Jews  were  commencing  their 
solemn  repast. 

These  witnesses  have  all  the  more  weight  with  us  because 
they  are  here  expressing,  not  the  personal  opinion  of  one  Father, 
or  even  of  one  section  of  Christendom,  but  they  are  speaking 
for  the  most  famous  Churches,  —  those  of  Egypt,  Asia,  Italy, 
Africa,  and  the  Gauls.  They  are  moreover  confirmed  by  the 
Jewish  traditions,  which  likewise  place  the  death  of  Jesus  on 
the  fourteenth  of  Nisan.6 

Modern  chronology  has  tried  to  solve  the  problem  now  before 
us,  and  has  reached  the  same  conclusions  which  were  held  by  the 
Fathers.  If,  accepting  its  reckoning,  we  take  the  year  thirty  as 
the  probable  date  of  the  death  of  Jesus,7  since  the  Evangelists, 
for  their  part  testified  that  the  Crucifixion  took  place  on  a  Fri- 
day, it  foHows  that  this  day  was  the  fourteenth  of  Nisan ;  for 
astronomical  calculations  show  that  this  year  the  new  moon  fell 
on  a  Wednesday,  the  twenty-second  of  March,  at  eight  minutes 
past  eight  in  the  evening.  Forty-eight  hours  afterwards  it 
became  visible  (the  Jews,  as  we  know,  waited  for  this  instant  to 

1  Migne,  Patrol ogie  grecque,  t.  x.  p.  870. 

2  Migne,  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  ix.  p.  758. 

3  S.  Irenseus,  Adversus  Hcereses,  iv.  10. 

4  Tertullian,  Adversus  Judccos,  8.  Father  Patrizi  thinks  it  possible  by 
the  aid  of  another  text  from  Tertullian  (Adversus  Ma.rcioncm,  iv.  39)  to 
weaken  the  force  of  this,  but  his  reasoning  is  far  from  being  convincing. 

5  Migne,  Patrologie  grecque,  t.  xcii.  p.  78. 

6  Sanhedrin,  vi.  2  ;  Jost,  Judcnthum,  i.  404. 

7  The  generally  received  date  is  the  29th  year  of  the  common  era,  the 
15th  of  Tiberius,  under  the  consulate  of  the  two  Gemini,  in  the  year  782 
of  Rome  (Patrizi,  De  Evangeliis,  lib.  iii.  p.  515).  But  Clement  of  Alex- 
andria long  ago  warned  us  that  the  more  exact  reckonings  pointed  to 
the  16th  year  of  Tiberius  (year  30)  as  the  true  date  of  the  Saviour's 
death  (Stromata,  i.  21).  The  latest  researches  of  chronologists  have  led 
the  most  famous  among  them  to  share  this  opinion  (Wieseler,  Chrono- 
logische  Synopse,  S.  334  ;  Caspari,  Einlcitung,  S.  44 ;  and  Reithmayr's 
Introduction). 


392  APPENDIX. 

reckon  the  beginning  of  their  month  a)  ;  Friday  evening,  March 
24,  accordingly  would  be  the  iirst  of  Nisan,  and  on  Thursday, 
the  sixth  of  April,  at  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  would  com- 
mence the  fourteenth  day  of  the  same  month,  which  would  end 
therefore  on  Friday,  April  the  7th,  ;it  the  same  hour. 

Does  this  mass  of  evidence  make  the  argument  incontesta- 
ble 1  "We  would  not  venture  to  assert  quite  so  much  as  that  ; 
but  so  long  as  there  are  no  precise  traditions  to  cast  any  fuller 
light  upon  the  problem,  we  think  that  the  solution  of  the  ear- 
liest Fathers  remains  the  most  plausible  of  all  proposed. 

Hence  evidently  it  follows  that  our  Lord,  when  anticipating 
the  legal  repast  by  twenty-four  hours,  saw  fit  not  to  observe  the 
letter  of  the  Law  rigorously  ;  however,  this  deduction  has  not 
dismayed  the  most  authoritative  interpreters.  A  majority  of 
those  holding  this  view  seek,  it  is  true,  to  palliate  the  infraction 
by  supposing  that  Jesus  alone  ate  the   Passover  at  the   time 

1  The  Jewish  months  were  lunar  months,  composed  alternately  of 
twenty-nine  and  thirty  days,  —  a  reckoning  sufficiently  exact,  since  the 
real  time  elapsing  between  two  new  moons  is  twenty-nine  days,  twelve 
hours,  forty-four  minutes,  three  seconds.  The  beginning  of  the  month 
was  not  determined  by  the  astronomical  new  moon  or  the  moment  of  con- 
junction, but  by  the  time  the  light  of  the  moon  became  visible  to  the 
naked  eye  ;  and  this,  according  to  Wurin,  Ideler,  Wieseler,  and  the  ma- 
jority of  astronomers,  takes  place  forty-eight  hours  after  the  instant  of 
conjunction.  Seven  times  a  year  three  members  of  the  Sanhedrin  were 
appointed  to  declare  formally  as  to  the  appearance  of  the  new  moon  (Bosh- 
hashanah,  i.  4).  On  the  30th  of  the  month  they  therefore  posted  watch- 
men upon  the  principal  mountains  about  Jerusalem,  with  orders  to  hurry 
back  as  soon  as  ever  they  spied  the  moon  in  the  sky  ;  nothing  could  with- 
hold them,  not  even  the  laws  of  the  Sabbath  observance,  which  they  were 
fully  authorized  to  break.  Their  testimony  was  taken  and  examined  by 
the  Councillors,  and  when  it  was  officially  recognized  as  true  the  president 
pronounced  the  word  :  U'^p'p,  "  Holy  !  "  all  the  assembled  people  re- 
peated :  "Holy!  Holy!"  and  this  day  was  consecrated  as  being  that  of 
the  new  moon  and  the  first  of  the  month  [Rosh-haskanah,  ii.  5,  7).  Bon- 
tires  lighted  from  hill  to  hill  forthwith  transmitted  the  news  across  Judea  ; 
later  on,  to  avoid  any  frauds,  messengers  were  employed.  When  the  moon 
was  descried  on  the  thirtieth  day  the  month  was  regarded  as  Inning  ended 
the  night  before,  and  counted  only  twenty-nine  days  ;  such  months  were 
called  "  incomplete,"  "^pn.  On  the  contrary  tbey  were  regarded  as 
"full,"  SOD,  when  the  moon  not  appearing  on  the  30th  of  the  month, 
they  included  this  thirtieth  day  ;  in  that  case  the  first  of  the  month  fol- 
lowing was  set  for  the  next  day.  Since  mists  and  clouds,  however,  made 
it  impossible  always  to  ascertain  the  earliest  appearance  of  the  moon  a  rule 
had  been  established  that  a  year  should  never  have  less  than  four  nor  more 
than  eight  full  months. 


THE   CHRONOLOGY  OF   THE  PASSION.  393 

prescribed  and  that  the  Jews  were  a  day  behindhand.  Their 
hatred  of  the  Christ,  if  we  are  to  believe  Saint  John  Chry- 
sostom,  outweighed  their  respect  for  the  Law,  and  to  glut 
their  vengeance,  they  postponed  the  solemnest  of  all  their  fes- 
tivals. The  Abbe  Rupert,  on  the  other  hand,  brings  to  light  a 
tradition  according  to  which  when  the  Pasch  fell  on  a  Friday, 
the  Rabbis,  in  order  not  to  have  two  Sabbaths  in  succession, 
transferred  the  celebration  of  the  Feast  to  the  day  following. 
•So  by  separating  Himself  from  the  other  Jews,  Jesus  simply 
remained  faithful  to  the  text  of  the  Law.  This  ingenious  hy- 
pothesis has  been  adopted  by  a  great  number  of  commentators.1 
Unfortunately  it  rests  upon  anything  but  solid  foundations,  for 
the  usage  to  which  Rupert  is  alluding  appears  to  be  of  later 
date  than  the  Christian  era.2  Admitting,  however,  that  this 
custom  existed  in  the  time  of  the  Christ,  it  still  remains  to  be 
explained  how  Jesus  could  have  procured  before  the  time  that 
lamb  which  the  Law  prescribed  should  be  sacrificed  in  the  Tem- 
ple on  the  fourteenth  day,  "  between  the  two  evenings,"  s  and 

1  Paul   de   Burgos,   Jansenius,    Estius,  Maklonatus,  Petau,  Hardouin, 
Tillemont. 

2  Cocceius,  Sanhedrin,  i.  2. 

3  Deut.  xvi.  2  ;  Exod.  xii.  6.  D'S^n  f3.  This  expression,  from  its 
origin,  probably  denoted  the  twilight  between  sunset  and  complete  dark- 
ness ;  and  it  is  so  understood  by  the  Karaites  and  the  Samaritans  (Aben 
Ezra,  in  Exod.  xii.  6).  But  the  great  number  of  lambs  to  V  immolated 
caused  it  to  be  construed  afterwards  as  the  time  elapsing  between  the 
evening  sacrifice  (two  hours  after  noon)  and  night  {Pesachim,  v.  ;  Mai- 
monides,  Hilcoth  Korban  Pesach.  i.  4).  Some  have  suggested  doubts  as  to 
the  possibility  in  so  limited  an  interval  of  despatching  such  a  considerable 
number  of  victims  ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  everything  was  regu- 
lated with  such  precision  that  not  a  moment  was  lost.  The  crowds,  di- 
vided into  groups,  entered  the  Temple  in  succession,  and  the  heads  of 
families,  each  bearing  the  lamb  on  his  shoulders,  were  alone  admitted. 
At  a  signal  given  by  the  Trumpeters  of  the  Sanctuary  each  of  them  slew 
his  own  Lamb  ;  the  Levites,  receiving  the  blood  in  vessels  of  gold,  passed 
them  along  from  hand  to  hand  up  to  the  Sanctuary,  where  the  priests 
splashed  this  blood  about  the  foot  of  the  Altar.  Numerous  iron  hooks  were 
iixed  along  the  walls  and  upon  the  columns  ;  here  the  lamb  was  suspended 
and  stripped  of  its  pelt ;  every  one  took  care  to  provide  himself  with  a 
curved  piece  of  wood,  which  they  hung  upon  their  shoulders  or  those  of 
their  neighbors,  in  order  to  attach  the  victim  thereto,  when  they  could 
find  no  convenient  spot  elsewhere.  In  order  to  preserve  silence  and  relig- 
ious respect  among  the  throngs,  hardly  had  the  sacred  trumpet  given  the 
signal  for  the  immolation  when  Levites,  assisted  by  a  choir  of  Mute-players, 
entoned  the  Hallel  (Ts.  cxiii.-exviii. ),  and  all  the  people  responded  at 
every  pause  :  "  Alleluia  !  "  ( Pesachim,  64  a  ;  Eracim,  10  a).  This  arrange- 
ment, strictly  observed,  enabled  them  to  acquire  such  rapidity  that,  under 


39-4  APPENDIX. 

how  the  priests  would  have  consented  to  violate  for  His  sak» 
rules  so  formal  that  the  Sanhedrin  always  enforced  them  un- 
flinchingly  and   without  mercy. 

These  iusolvable  difficulties  have  induced  Dom  Calmet  to 
admit  that  at  the  last  Passover  Jesus  did  not  partake  of  the 
legal  repast,  but  was  content  to  institute  the  Eucharist.  With- 
out going  so  far  as  to  share  this  opinion,  which  is  too  plainly 
opposed  to  the  general  feeling  of  the  Church,1  is  not  the  solu- 
tion which  Dr.  Sepp2  proposes  (though  without  dwelling  much 
upon  it)  in  his  Life  of  Jesus,  the  most  reasonable  one  after  all? 

He  reminds  us  that  the  lamb  did  not  constitute  the  whole 
Pasch  ;  the  azyme-bread  and  the  bitter  herbs  also  had  their 
place  in  the  Ritual,  and  indeed  were  thought  so  important  that 
the  solemnity  was  sometimes  called  the  Feast  of  the  Azymes,  and 
sometimes  Feast  of  the  Pasch,  indifferently.  The  absence  of  the 
lamb  did  not  prevent  Jesus  from  accomplishing  the  numerous 
rites  of  the  Paschal  festival,  since  the  eating  of  the  victim  was 
only  the  final  act  in  this  ceremony.  Thus  the  four  cups  were 
blessed  successively,  amid  the  usual  singing  of  hymns,  the  bitter 
herbs  were  dipped  in  the  vinegar,  the  azyme-bread  broken  and 
distributed  among  the  guests.  The  lamb  only  was  wanting; 
but  the  veritable  Lamb  of  God,  He  Who  bore  the  sins  of  the 
world  in  a  figure,  ever  since  the  beginning  of  time,  was  not  He 
truly  present  ?  And  what  sublimer  end  could  have  been  given 
the  legal  Passover,  now  finally  and  forever  abrogated,  than  this 
of  Jesus  substituting  the  Truth  for  its  shadow,  and  offering  His 
Apostles,  instead  of  that  poweidess  host,  His  own  Body,  to  be 
their  food  1 3     The  Judaic  Ritual  actually  put  into  His  hands  the 

Agrippa,  for  one  single  Pasch  there  were  immolated  256,000  lambs  (Tal- 
mud of  Babylon,  Pesachim,  64  b  ;  Josephus,  Bcllum  Judaicum,  ii.  14,  3  ; 
vi.  9,  3). 

1  "  Celebrate  veteri  Pascha  .  .  .  novum  instituit"  (Concilium  Triclen- 
tin  a  in,  xii.  1). 

2  Libra  Jr.su,  b.  vi.  s.  48. 

3  M.  Wallon,  in  his  scholarly  work,  Dc  la  Croyance  due  a  V^vangile, 
eridently  inclines  to  this  solution  :  "  If  the  Paschal  lamb  was  only  for  a 
figure  of  the  Saviour  may  it  not  he  that  the  Saviour  would  wish  to  accom- 
plish His  own  sacrifice  on  the  day  when  this  lamb  ought  to  be  immolated 
according  to  the  Law  /  And,  in  that  case,  if  He  desired  with  a  great,  de- 
sire to  celebrate  with  His  disciples  this  Passover,  wherein  He  gave  them, 
to  be  their  meat  and  drink,  His  Body  broken  for  them,  His  Blood  shed  for 
them,  was  it  not  fitting  that  He  should  set  the  day  for  this  Last  Supper 
one  day  ahead,  though  so  to  do  was  to  disregard  some  point  in  the  Ritual 
of  the  Feast  ?     All  this  legal  ritual  indeed  was  precisely  what  must  needs 


HARMONY  OF  THE  FOUR    GOSPELS.  395 

unleavened  bread,  bidding  Him  break  it,  bless,  and  give  it  to 
His  disciples;  one  single  act  of  His  will,  one  sacramental  word, 
and  this  bread  disappeared,  leaving  in  its  stead  His  adorable 
Flesh  alone.  The  wine,  spilled  according  to  ancient  usage  and 
drunk  after  the  eating  of  the  lamb,  was  changed  into  the  Blood 
of  God.  This  third  cup  of  the  festal  banquet  was  called  the  Chal- 
ice of  Benediction.1  It  is  to  this,  doubtless,  that  Saint  Paul 
alludes  in  those  words  :  "  The  Chalice  of  Benediction  which  we 
consecrate,  is  it  not  a  communion  in  the  Blood  of  the  Christ  1 " 
However,  if  this  supposition  seems  too  bold,  we  have  then  no 
recourse  except  to  presume  that  Jesus  caused  the  Paschal  lamb 
to  be  immolated  by  His  disciples  without  first  presenting  it  in 
the  Temple.  Lord  and  Master  of  the  Passover,  even  as  of  the 
Sabbath,  He  could  alter  this  particular  point  in  a  system  which 
He  was  now  about  to  abrogate,  when  instituting  the  Sacrifice 
of  the  New  Covenant.  Once  before,  as  we  know,  in  the  preced- 
ing year,  He  had  dispensed  Himself  from  going  up  to  Jerusa- 
lem for  the  celebration  of  this  Feast.  Thereby  He  showed  that, 
as  the  Divine  Legislator,  He  remained  above  the  Law  and  its 
prescriptions. 


XI. 

HARMONY    OF    THE    FOUR    GOSPELS    IN    THE    NARRATIVES    OF    THE 
RESURRECTION. 

To  set  forth  the  Harmony  between  the  inspired  witnesses  is 
a  delicate  task  under  all  circumstances,  yet  when  we  come  to 
the  story  of  the  Resurrection,  it  offers  such  serious  difficulties 
that  the  incredulous  of  all  ages,  from  the  time  of  Celsus  up  to 
Dr.  Strauss,  have  regarded  this  part  of  the  Gospel  as  simply  a 
tissue  of  contradictions.  At  this  point,  as  upon  so  many  others, 
their  efforts  have  been  unavailing,  for  it  is  possible  now  as  ever 
to  dispose  the  facts  in  such  a  manner  as  to  form  a  connected 
account.  The  only  real  rashness,  therefore,  would  be  in  insist- 
ing that  such  and  such  an  arrangement  is  the  only  true  one,  — 
the  thread  whereby  these  scattered  fragments  were  strung 
together  being  lost  to  us. 

cease  when  He  carae  to  accomplish  the  Law.     The  old-time  Pasch  was 
now  to  end  ;  He  Himself  had  instituted  the  New  Passover"  (p.  400). 
1  np^  D13.     Lightfoot,  Horcc  Hebraiccc,  in  1  Cor.  x.  16. 


396  APPENDIX. 

Nor  is  there  anything  in  this  which  need  astonish  ns,  when 
we  remember  what  was  the  nature  of  that  great  Miracle,  —  the 
tomb  mysteriously  opened,  round  about  it  the  ground  shaken, 
tlic  guard  Hung  to  earth  or  wildly  fleeing,  while  Angels  appear 
and  disappear,  alike  with  equal  swiftness.  Amazed  and  quite 
beside  themselves,  the  Witnesses  had  neither  the  leisure  nor 
the  equanimity  necessary  to  retain  details  of  the  time  or 
the  order  of  events,  while  such  prodigies  were  taking  place 
about  them.  When  something  like  calm  had  been  restored 
among  them,  there  remained,  on  one  hand,  the  unalterable  con- 
viction that  Jesus  was  risen  again  ;  but  on  the  other,  the  great- 
est difficulty  in  connecting  the  accounts  which  poured  in  on  all 
sides.  Soon  it  came  to  be  a  common  feeling  that  these  Appear- 
ances had  been  so  multiplied1  that  any  attempt  to  collect 
the  innumerable  details  must  be  abandoned;  for  John's  saying 
refers  as  well  to  these  last  days  as  to  the  entire  lifetime  of  the 
Christ :  — 

"  If  we  should  describe  all  these  things  one  by  one,  the  whole 
world  would  not  suffice  to  contain  the  books  which  we  should 
have  to  write."2 

It  was,  then,  of  set  purpose  that  the  Evangelists  omitted  to 
recount  everything  ;  they  even  took  for  granted  that  many  things 
were  well-known  to  their  readers  which  are  extremely  obscure  to 
us.  Saint  Matthew  3  speaks  of  a  mountain  as  pointed  out  for 
the  Apostles  by  Jesus,  while  we  are  left  entirely  ignorant  as  to 
when  this  meeting-place  was  designated  to  them.  Saint  Luke  4 
is  the  only  one  to  record  another  appearance  of  the  Saviour  to 
Saint  Peter,  which  is  confirmed  in  the  First  Epistle  to  the 
Corinthians.5  The  same  Epistle  also  mentions  a  Manifestation 
to  Saint  James,6  of  which  we  find  no  traces  at  all  except  in  the 
apocryphal  traditions.  Among  these  miracles  without  number, 
which  were  then  fresh  in  all  their  minds,  the  Evangelists  freely 
selected  such  features  as  seemed  best  fitted  to  their  design,  and 
neglected  the  rest. 

Their  common  end  was  to  testify  to  the  fact  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion, leaving  evidence  which  should  be  a  foundation  of  faith 
unto  all  ages.  For  this  what  was  requisite?  To  recall:  (1) 
That  on  the  morning  of  the  day  which  followed  the  Passover, 
the  Sepulchre  was  found  empty  ;  (2)  That  Angels  announced 

i  Acts  i.  3.  2  John  xxi.  25. 

8  Matt,  xxviii.  16.  4  Luke  xxiv.  34. 

5  1  Cor.  xv.  5.  6  1  Cor.  xv.  7. 


HARMONY  OF   THE  FOUR   GOSPELS.  397 

the  Resurrection,  and  that  shortly  after  Jesus  confirmed  their 
testimony  in  person  ;  (3)  That  distrust  and  doubt  at  first  greeted 
this  news,  and  thus  their  prolonged  opposition  became  the  sm*- 
est  pledge  of  the  Apostles'  veracity.  Tins  threefold  aspect  of 
events  we  find  established  in  each  Evangelist,  by  a  different  line 
of  proofs,  certainly,  but  all  equally  conclusive.  And  this  very 
diversity  is  a  valuable  feature  of  the  History,  since  it  shows  us 
how  the  faith  in  the  Resurrection  developed  within  the  Church,  — 
with  no  official  record,  with  no  preliminary  agreement  between 
the  Apostles  ;  indeed  there  was  no  need  of  it,  for  they  all 
had  seen  the  Risen  Jesus,  all  proclaimed  the  fact,  and  it  is 
but  the  echo  of  their  words  which  we  read  to-day  in  the 
Gospels. 

Here,  as  everywhere  else,  Saint  John  is  the  most  exact ;  being 
one  of  the  actors  in  each  scene  which  he  describes,  he  is  simply 
relating  just  what  passed  before  his  eyes;  the  facts  are  fresh 
and  ever  living  in  his  memory  ;  details  of  time  and  place  are 
recorded  with  perfect  clearness. 

The  Synoptic  Writers  are  far  from  determining  the  or- 
der of  events  after  any  such  precise  fashion  as  this.  Saint 
Luke,  whose  narrative  is  the  most  circumstantial  after  Saint 
John's,  seeks  especially  to  bring  to  light  the  idea  that  Jesus  is 
Son  of  God  and  Son  of  Man,  and  by  this  twofold  title,  Re- 
deemer of  mankind.  Indeed  it  would  seem  that  his  sole 
thought  in  recounting  the  three  scenes  of  the  Resurrection,  is 
compassed  in  that  exclamation  which  he  utters  after  each  event : 

"  Ought  not  the  Christ  to  have  suffered  and  so  to  enter  into 
His  glory  1  "  » 

The  first  two  Evangelists  are  still  briefer.  Saint  Matthew 
only  considers  the  Resurrection  as  the  triumph  of  the  Messiah 
promised  to  Israel,  and  the  testimony  of  Saint  Mark  makes  an 
ending  there  where  it  took  its  beginning :  "  The  Gospel  of 
the  Son  of  God."  2  A  few  lines  are  all  he  takes  to  declare  this 
marvel ;  straightway  the  story  hurries  on  to  that  conclusion  3 
which  absorbed  every  thought  of  the  Evangelist :  — 

1  Luke  xxiv.  7,  26,  46. 

2  Mark  i.  1. 

3  The  sudden  break  which  makes  S.  Mark's  last  chapter,  after  verse  8, 
appear  like  a  later  addition  has  been  variously  explained.  Hug,  Norton, 
etc.,  suppose  that  the  Evangelist's  work  was  interrupted  by  some  unknown 
circumstance,  —  as,  for  example,  the  persecution  in  which  S.  Peter  met  his 
death, —  and  was  not  taken  up  again  until  later.  Being  then  separated  from 
any  primitive  sources  of  information  S.  Mark,  according  to  this  hypothe* 


398  APPENDIX. 

"  So   then  the  Lord  Jesus  was  taken  up  into  Heaven,  and 
there  He  is  seated  at  the  right  haud  of  Cod."  1 

sis,  was  only  able  to  give  a  digesl  of  the  most  authoritative  traditions  of 
the  Church.  Other  critics  go  .--till  farther;  taking  the  evidence  of  the 
Vatican  and  Sinaitic  MSS..  and  seeing  that  8.  .leu, mi'  and  Eusebius  hesi- 
tate about  accepting  these  verses,  they  have  rejected  them  as  apocryphal. 

The  Catholic  Church,  under  better  inspiration,  has  always  defended  these 
hallowed  wonls,  and  very  many  Protestant  scholars  have  declared  them- 
seh  es  of  the  like  opinion  (Bengel,  Eichhorn,  Kuinoel,  de  Wette,  Olshausen, 
Ebrard,  Lange,  Bleek,  etc.).  Though  omitted  indeed  by  some  manuscripts 
and  by  the  Armenian  Version,  the  close  of  S.  Mark's  Gospel  is  to  he  found 
in  the  Codex  of  Alexandria,  in  that  of  Ephrsem  and  Beza,  as  well  as  the 
ancient  Versions,  which  witness  for  texts  much  older  than  ours  (the  Latin 
Version,  the  Syriac,  etc.).  Besides  authorities  of  such  weight  we  must  add 
the  evidence  of  the  first  Fathers  who  had  read  this  passage  (S.  Irenaus,  S. 
Hippolytus,  S.  Cyril  of  Jerusalem,  etc. ).  It  is  very  likely  that  the  Ah  xan- 
drians,  believing  that  this  fragment  would  condemn  their  custom  of  ending 
their  fast  and  beginning  their  Paschal-Feast  at  midnight  (avacrras  wpw't, 
Mark  xvi.  9),  suppressed  it  purposely  in  their  public  readings  and  in  the 
copies  belonging  to  their  Churches.  So  mutilated,  tie-  sacred  text  evi- 
dently lacks  any  conclusion  ;  tin-  one  we  find  in  the  Codex  Regius  Pari- 
siensis  (eighth  century)  shows  how  it  was  endeavored  to  supply  this  want : 
^•eperal  wov  raura  f  iravTO.  5e  ra  Trap-qyyeXfieva  tois  wepl  rbv  Werpov  avv- 
to/jLuis  e$-7jyyet\a.i>  •  fxera  de  ravra  Kal  avrbs  6  I^aoOs,  a.7rd  avaroXfjs  Kal 
&XP1  Svcrews  e^awecrTei.\ev  8i  avru>i>  to  iepbv  Kal  acjidapTov  Krjpvypa  ttjs  aluvlov 
GUT-qpias  (Reithmayr,  Introduction  :  Tregelles,  Printed  Text  of  the  New 
Testa-merit,  pp.  246-261  ;  Caspari,  Einleitung,  §  184). 
1  Mark  xvi.  19. 


A   CONCORDANCE   OF  THE  FOUR  GOSPELS. 


The  Childhood  of  Jesds. 


St.  Luke's  Prologue  .     .     .     . 

Ziehary's  Vision 

The  Annunciation      .     .     .     . 

The  Incarnation 

The  Visitation 

The  birth  of  John  Baptist 
An  angel  sent  to  Joseph     .     . 

The  Genealogies 

Birth  of  Jesus 

Presentation  in  the  Temple  . 
Adoration  of  the  Magi  .  .  . 
Flight  into  Egypt  .  .  .  . 
Slaughter  of  the  Holy  Inno- 

cents     

The  return  to  Nazareth  .  . 
Jesus  among  the  Doctors  .  . 
Life  of  Jesus  at  Nazareth  .     . 


i.  18-25. 
i.  1-18. 


ii.  1-12. 

ii.  13-15. 


ii.  16-18. 
ii.  19-23. 


39-50. 

57-80. 

i.  23-38. 
t.  1-21. 

.  22-38. 


39,  40. 
.  41-50. 
51,  52. 


i.  1-18. 


The  Beginning  of  the  Ministry  of  Jesus. 


John's  preaching  .  . 
Biptism  of  Jesus  .  . 
The  Temptation  .  . 
John's  first  testimony 
Jesus'  first  disciples  . 
The  marriage  at  Cana 
Capharnaum     .     .     . 


iii.  1-12. 
iii.  13-17. 
iv.  1-11. 


i.  1-8. 
i.  9-11. 

i.  12,  13. 


iii.  1-18. 
iii.  21,  22. 
iv.  1-13. 


i.  19-34. 

i.  35-51. 

ii.  1-11. 

ii.  12. 


First  Year  in  the  Ministry  of  Jesus. 


Hucksters    driven    from    the 

iii.  1-21. 

iii.  22. 

John's  second  testimony    .     . 

.     .     .     . 

iii.  23-36. 

John  Baptist  cast  in  prison     . 

xiv.  3-5. 

vi.  17-20. 

iii.  19,  20. 

Jesus  withdraws  into  Galilee 

iv.  12. 

i.  14. 

iv.  14. 

iv.  1-3. 

The  Samaritan  woman  .     .     . 

iv.  4-42. 

Jesus  driven  from  Nazareth   . 

iv.  15^30. 

iv.  43-46. 

The  official's  son  at  Caphar- 

400     A    CONCORDANCE   OF   THE  FOUR   GOSPELS. 


First  Year  in  the  Ministry  of  Jesus  (continued). 


Jesus  goes  down  to  Caphar- 

II':. in 

The  tirst  preaching  of  Jesus 
in  Galilee 

Calling  of  the  first  Apostles  . 

The  possessed  man  of  Caphar- 
naum 

Sinn  hi  Peter's  mother-in-law  . 

First  mission  through  Galilee 

Miraculous  draught  of  lishes 

Healing  a  leper 

Healing  a  paralytic    .... 

Calling  of  Levi 


Matthew. 


iv.  17. 
iv.  18-22. 


viii.  14-17. 
iv.  23. 


viii.  1  4. 
ix.  1-8. 
ix.  9. 


i.  14,  15. 

i.  10-20. 

i.  21-28. 

i.  29  38. 

i.  39. 


i.  40-15. 
ii.  1-13. 
ii.  14. 


iv.  31-37. 
iv.  38-43. 
iv.  44. 
v.  1-11. 
v.  12-16. 
v.  17-26. 
v.  27-28. 


Second  Year  in  the  Ministry  of  Jesus. 


The  Pool  of  Bethesda  (Second 
Pasch)  

The  ears  of  corn 

A  man  with  a  withered  hand  . 

Manifold  cures  worked  in  Gal- 
ilee   

The  Twelve  Apostles      .     .     . 

Sermon  on  the  Mount    .     .     . 

The  Centurion  of  Capharnauin 

The  widow  of  Nairn  .... 

John's  message 

The  sinner  at  Simon's  banquet 

Second  mission  through  Gal- 
ilee 

A  possessed  man,  both  blind 
and  dumb.  — The  Pharisees' 
calumny 

The  mother  and  brethren  of 
Jesus    

The  parables 

The  tempest  calmed      .     .     . 

The  possessed  men  at  Gergesa 

Levi's  dinner-giving  .... 

The  woman  with  an  issue  of 
blood,  and  the  daughter  of 
Jairus 

Jesus  rejected  by  the  Naza- 

renes    

Third  mission  through  Galilee 
Mission  of  the  Twelve  Apostle  ; 

Death  of  John  Baptist  .  .  . 
First    multiplication    of   the 

loaves  

Jesus  walks  on  the  waves  .  . 
Ci:re8  wrought  in  the  land  of 

Genesareth 

The  Bread  of  Life     .... 


xii.  1-8. 
xii.  9-21. 

iv.  23-25. 

x.  2-4. 
v.,  vi.,  vii. 
viii.  5-13. 


xii.  22-37. 

xii.  46-50. 
xiii.  1-53. 
viii.  18,23  27, 
viii.  28-34. 
ix.  10-17. 


ix.  18-26. 

xiii.  54-58. 

ix.  :;:<  -38. 

x.  1,  5-42; 

xi.  1. 

xiv.  1-12. 

xiv.  13-21. 

.xiv. '_"_';'.;;. 

xiv.  34-36. 


ii.  23 -28. 
iii.  1-6. 


iii.  7-12. 
iii.  13-19. 


iii.  20-30. 

iii.  31-35. 
iv.  1-34. 
iv.  35-40. 
v.  1-20. 
ii.  15-22. 


vi.  1-6. 

vi.  6. 
vi.  7-13. 

vi.  14-29. 

vi.  30  41. 
s\.  B-52. 


vi.  1-5. 
vi.  0-11. 

vi.  17-19. 
vi.  12-10. 
vi.  20-49. 
vii.  1-10. 
vii.  11-17. 
vii.  18-35. 
vii.  36-50. 

viii.  1-3. 


viii.  19-21. 

viii.  4-18. 
viii.  22-25. 
viii.  26-39. 

viii.  40 ; 

v.  29-39. 


ix.  1-6. 
ix.  7-9. 
ix.  10-17. 


A   CONCORDANCE   OF  THE  FOUR    GOSPELS.     401 
Third  Year  in  the  Ministry  of  Jesus. 


Matthew. 

Mabk. 

Luke. 

John. 

Pharisaic  ablutions    .... 

A  deaf  aud  dumb  man  cured  . 
Second  multiplication  of  the 

Jesus  at  Dalmanutha     .     .     . 

The  blind  man  at  BethsaTda  . 
Peter's  confession      .... 
First  prediction  of  the  Passion 
The  Transfiguration  .... 
The  demonished  child    .     .     . 
Second  prediction  of  the  Pas- 

xv.  1-20. 
xv.  21-28. 

xv.  29-38. 

xv.  39 ; 
xvi.  1-12. 

xvi.'  13-20. 
xvi.  21-28. 
xvii.  1-13. 
xvii.  14-20. 

xvii.  21,  22. 
xvii.  23-26. 
xviii.  1-5. 
xviii.  6-14. 
xviii.  15-35. 

viii.  19-22. 

vii.  1-23. 
vii.  24-30. 
vii.  31-37. 

viii.  1-9. 
viii.  10-21. 

viii.  22-26. 

viii.  27-30. 

viii.  31-39. 

ix.  1-12. 

ix.  13-29. 

ix.  30,  31. 

ix.  32-40. 
ix.  41-19 

ix.  18-21. 
ix.  22-27. 
ix.  28-36. 
ix.  37-43. 

ix.  44,  45. 

ix.  46-50. 

ix.  51-62. 

Rivalry  among  the  Apostles  . 

Scandals 

Forgiveness  of  injuries  .     .     . 

Jesus  goes  to  the  Feast  of  the 

Tabernacles 

vii.  1-10. 
vii.  11  53. 

viii.  1  11. 

Jesus  the  Light  of  the  World 

viii.  12-59 

ix.  1-41. 

Malediction  of  the  lake-cities 
The  seventy-two  disciples  .     . 

Martha  and  Mary 

xi.  20-24. 
xi.  25-30. 

x.  1-24. 

x.  38-42. 
xi.  1-13.    . 

xi.  14-28. 
xi.  29-36. 

xi.  37-54. 
xii.  1-12. 
xii.  13-34. 
xii.  35-48. 
xii.  49-53. 
xii.  54-57. 

xii.  58-59. 

xiii.  1-5. 

xiii.  6-9. 
xiii.  10-18. 
xiii.  19-21. 
xiii.  22-30. 
xiii.  31-33. 
xiii.  34,  35. 

Cure  of  two  blind  men  .     .     . 
The  dumb  devil  and  the  Phari- 

ix.  27-31. 

ix.  32-34. 
xii.  38-45. 

.... 

The  sign  of  Jonas      .... 
Jesus  in  the  Pharisee's  dwell- 

The  leaven  of  the  Pharisees   . 

Reconciliation  with  our  ene- 

The  slaughtered  Galileans 

Parables  of  God's  kingdom    . 
Scanty  number  of  the  Elect  . 

x.  22-42. 

The  guests  at  the  banquet 

xiv.  1-6. 
xiv.  7-24. 

xiv.  34,  35. 
xv.  1-7. 
xv.  8-10. 
xv.  11-32. 
xvi.  1-13. 

vol.  ii.  —  26 


402       A    i'OXCOIlDAXCE    OF    THE   FOUR    GOSEEl.S 


Third  Yeae  in  the  Ministry  of  Jesus  (continued). 


Matthew. 

Mabk. 

Luke. 

John. 

xvi.  14-18. 

xvi.  19-31. 

xvii.  1,  2. 

xvii.  :;.  4. 

xvii.  5.  11. 
xvii.  7-10. 

xi.  1-54. 

Last  journey  Jerusalemwards 

xix.  1,  2. 

X.    1. 

xvii.  11. 

The  ten  lepers 

xviii.  12-19. 

The  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man 

xviii.  20-37. 

The    widow  and    the    unjust 

xviii.  1-8. 

The  Pharisee  and  the  Publican 

x\iii.  9-14. 

xix.  3-12. 

x.  2-12. 

Jesua  and  the  little  children  . 

xix.  L3-15. 

x.  13-16. 

xviii.  15-17. 

Dangers  of  wealth      .... 

xix.  10-30. 

x.  17-31. 

xviii.  18-30. 

Workmen  in  the  Vineyard 

XX.  1-16. 

Third  prediction  of  the  Passion 

xx.  17-19. 

x.  .".2-3-1. 

xviii.  31-34. 

x.  35-45. 

A  blind  man  at  Jericho  .     .     . 

xx.  29-34. 

x.  40-52. 

xviii.  35—43. 

xix.  1-10. 

xix.  11-28. 

The  banquet  at  Bethany    .     . 

xxvi.  C-13. 

xiv.  3-9. 

.... 

xii.  1-11. 

Holy  Week. 


Jesus'  entry  into  Jerusalem   . 

The  fig-tree  cursed    .... 

Merchants  driven  from  the 
Temple 

Greeks  in  the  Temple    .     .     . 

The  fig-tree  withered     .     .     . 

John's  baptism 

The  two  sons 

The  householder  and  his  vine- 
yard       

The  wedding  festival      .     .     . 

Gesar's  denarius 

The  Resurrection  of  the  dead 

The  Great  Commandment .     . 

The  Christ,  David's  Son     .     . 

Malediction  of  the  Pharisees  . 

Jesus  weeps  over  Jerusalem   . 

The  widow's  mite 

Destruction  of  the  Temple 

The  ruin  of  Jerusalem  and  the 
end  of  the  world    .... 

Vigilance 

The  wicked  servant  .... 

The  foolish  and  the  wise  vir- 
gins   

The  servants  and  the  talents  . 

The  Last  Judgment   .... 

Conspiracy  of  the  Scribes  and 
priests  

Treason  of  Judas 

Preparations  for  the  Last  Sup- 
per   


xxi.  1-11. 
xxi.  1S-19. 
xxi.  12-17. 


xxi.  2(1-22. 
xxi.  23-27. 
xxi.  28-32. 

xxi.  33-4G. 
xxii.  1-14. 
xxii.  15-22. 
xxii.  23-33. 
xxii.  34-40. 
xxii.  41—10. 
xxiii.  1-36. 
xxiii.  37-39. 


xxiv.  1,  2. 

xxiv.  3-41. 
xxiv.  42-44. 
xxiv.  45-51. 

xxv.  1-13. 
xxv.  14-30. 
xxv.  31  -10. 

xxvi.  1-5. 
xxvi.  14-10. 

xxvi.  17-19. 


xi.  1-11. 
xi.  12-14. 
xi.  15-19. 


xi.  20-26. 
xi.  27-33. 


xii.  1-12. 

xii.  13-17. 
xii.  18-27. 
xii.  28-34. 
xii.  35-37. 
xii.  38-40. 

xii.  41^4. 
xiii.  1,  2. 

xiii.  3-32. 
xiii.  33-37. 


xiv.  1,  2. 
xiv.  10,  11. 

xiv.  12-16. 


xix.  29^4 ; 

xxi.  37-38. 


xix.  45-4S. 


xx.  9-19. 

xx.  20-26. 
xx.  27-39. 

xx.  40. 
xx.  41-44. 
xx.  45-17. 

xxi.  1-4. 
xxi.  5,  0. 

xxi.  7-30. 


xxii.  1,  2. 
xxii.  3-6. 

xxii.  7-13. 


xi.  55-5G  ; 
xii.  12-19. 


xii.  20-50. 


A    CONCORDANCE   OF    THE  FOUR    GOSPELS.      403 


Holy  Week  (continued). 


Matthew. 

Mark. 

Luke. 

John. 

xxvi.  20. 

xiv.  17. 

xxii.  14-18. 

Judas'  betrayal  denounced 
Institution  of  the  Eucharist   . 
The  traitor  denounced  again  . 

xxvi.  21-125. 
xxvi.  26-29. 

xiv.  18-21. 
xiv.  22-25. 

xxii.  19,  20. 
xxii.  21-23. 

xiii.  21,  22. 
xiii.  23-30. 

xiii.  30-38. 

Apostles  dispute  for  the  Pri- 

xxii.  24-30. 
xxii.  31-38. 

xxii.  39. 

Discourse  after  the  Supper 
Jesus  leaves  the  Supper-Room 

xxvi.  30. 

xiv.  20. 

xiv.  1-31. 
xiv.  31. 

xv   '.I  17 

The  Holy  Spirit,  —  the  Com- 

xvi  5  15 

xvi.  23-31. 

The  disciples'  fall  foretold 

xxvi.  31-35. 

xix.  27-31. 

xvi.  32,  33. 
xvii.  1-26. 

The  Passion  and  the  Resurrection. 


Gethsemani      .     .  . 

Jesus  arrested  .     .  . 

Jesus  before  Annas  . 

Peter's  first  denial  . 


His  second  denial 

Third  denial 

First  hearing  before  the  San- 

hedrin 

Jesus  maltreated 

Second  hearing  before  the  San- 

hedrin 

Judas'  despair 

Jesus  before  Pilate    .... 


Sent  to  Herod  .  .  . 
Remanded  to  Pilate  . 
Jesus  and  Barrabas  . 
The  Scourging  .  .  . 
Pilate's  last  resistance 
Way  of  the  Cross  .  . 
The  Crucifixion     .     . 


The  superscription  on  the 
Cross 

His  garments  divided    .     .     . 

Jesus  insulted  on  the  Cross    . 

The  good  thief 

Mary  and  John  at  the  foot  of 
the  Cross 

The  Darkness.   Death  of  Jesus 

The  marvellous  happenings    . 


xxvi.  3G-40. 

xxvi.  47-50. 

xxvi.  57. 

xxvi.  58,  69, 

70. 
xxvi.  71,  72. 
xxvi.  73-75. 

xxvi.  59-66. 
xxvi.  67,  68. 

xxvii.  1. 

xxvii.  3-10. 

xxvii.  2, 

11-14. 


xxvii.  15-26. 
xxvii.  26-31. 


xxvii.  .>2. 

xxvii.  33, 

34,  38. 

xxvii.  37. 
xxvii.  35,  36. 
xxvii.  39-43. 

xxvii.  44. 


xxvii.  45-50. 
xxvii.  51-53. 


xiv.  32-42. 

xiv.  43-52. 

xiv.  53. 

xiv.  54, 
66-68. 

xiv.  69,  70. 

xiv.  70-72. 

xiv.  55-64. 
xiv.  65. 

XV.  1. 

xv.  1-5. 


xv.  6-15. 
xv.  15-20. 


xv.  21,  22. 
xv.  23,  25, 

27,  28. 

xv.  26. 

xv.  24. 

xv.  29-32. 

xv.  32. 


xv.  33-37. 
xv.  38. 


xxii.  40-46. 

xxii.  47-53. 

xxii.  54. 

xxii.  54-57. 

xxii.  58. 
xxii.  59-62. 


xxii.  63-65. 

xxii.  66-71. 

xxiii.  1-6. 

xxiii.  6-12. 
xxiii.  13-16. 
xxiii.  17-25. 


xxiii.  26-32. 
xxiii.  32-34. 


xxiii.  38. 

xxiii.  34. 
xxiii.  35-37. 
xxiii.  39-13. 


xxiii.  11   16. 
xxiii.  45. 


xviii.  1. 
xviii.  2-11. 
xviii.  12-14; 

19-24. 
xviii.  15-18. 

xviii.  25. 
xviii.  26,  27. 


xviii.  28-38. 


xviii.  39,  40. 
xix.  1-3. 
xix.  4-16. 
xix.  17. 
xix.  18. 


xix.  19-22. 
xix.  23,  24. 


xix.  25-27. 
xix.  28-30. 


404      A   CONCORDANCE   OF  THE  FOUR   GOSPELS. 
The  Tassion  and  the  Resurrection  {continued). 


Matthew. 

Mark. 

Luke. 
xxiii.  47^19. 

John. 

The  Centurion,  and  the  disci- 
ples on  Calvary      .... 
The  side  of  Jesus  pierced  with 

xxvii.  54-50. 

xv.  39-41. 

xix.  31-37. 

The  burial  of  Jesus   .... 
Guards  set  over  the  Toinl> 
The  two   Marys  and  Salome 
at  the  Sepulchre     .... 

xxvii.  57-61. 
xxvii.  62-66. 

xxviii.  1-S. 

xv.  42-47. 

xvi.  1-8. 

xxiii.  50-50. 

xxiv.  12. 

xxiv.  1-11. 

xxiv.  13-35. 
xxiv.  30-43. 

xix.  38-42. 

xx.  1,  2. 
xx.  3-10. 

Je.->us   shows   Himself  to  the 
The  holy  women  at  the  Sepul- 

xvi.  9-11. 

xx.  11-18. 

Jesus  appears  to  them  .     .     . 
The    guards   over   the   Tomb 

The  disciples  at  Eiumaus  .     . 
Jesus  appears  hi  the  Supper- 

xxviii.  9,  10. 
xxviii.  11-15. 

xvi.  12,  23. 
xvi.  14. 

xx.  19-25. 

He  shows  Himself  to  Thomas 
Jesus  on  the  shores  of  Lake 

xx.  20-31. 
xxi.  1-25. 

Appearance  of  Jesus  upon  the 
Mountain  in  Galilee    .     .     . 

xxviii.  16-20. 

xvi.  15-18. 
xvi.  IS),  20. 

xxiv.  44-53. 

INDEX. 


Abandonment  of  Jesus  upon  the 
Cross,  ii.  336. 

Abgab,  king  of  Edessa,  ii.  175. 

Abilene  of  Lysanias,  i.  99. 

Ablutions  practised  by  Pharisees, 
ii.  4,  89. 

Adoration  of  the  Shepherds,  i.  53  ; 
of  the  Magi,  i.  67. 

Adultery  forbidden  by  the  Law, 
i.  264  ;  the  woman  taken  in 
adultery,  ii.  55. 

Agony  of  Jesus  at  Gethsemani,  ii. 
262. 

Ai'n  Karim,  i.  106. 

Akra,  an  elevation  of  Jerusalem, 
i.  357-359. 

Ancients  of  the  people,  i.  6,  65,  275. 

Andrew,  Apostle.  His  calling  on 
the  banks  of  Jordan,  i.  132  ;  on 
the  shores  of  Lake  Geneserath, 
i.  210  ;  he  brings  to  Jesus  the 
Greeks  seeking  Him  in  the  Tem- 
ple, ii.  176. 

Angel  of  the  Lord,  i.  369-371. 
Angel  appears  to  Zachary,  i.  23  ; 
to  Mary,  i.  30  ;  to  Joseph,  i.  40, 
68,  74  ;  to  the  Shepherds,  i.  51  ; 
to  Jesus  on  the  Mount  of  Temp- 
tation, i.  128  ;  at  Gethsemani,  ii. 
264  ;  to  the  Holy  Women,  ii.  352  ; 
to  The  Magdalene,  ii.  355  ;  to  the 
Apostles  after  the  Ascension,  ii. 
378. 

Anna  the  Prophetess,  i.  59. 

Annas  the  High-Priest,  his  in- 
fluence with  the  Sanhedrin,  i. 
104  ;  ii.  271  ;  he  cross-questions 
Jesus,  ii.  273. 

Annunciation  of  the  Angel  Ga- 
briel to  Mary,  i.  31. 


Antigonus,  son  or  Hyrcanus,  i.  4. 

Antipas,  son  of  Herod  the  Great, 
his  character,  i.  100  ;  his  union 
with  Herodias,  i.  181  ;  he  puts 
John  Baptist  to  death,  i.  332  ;  he 
insults  Jesus  sent  before  him, 
ii.  301  ;  his  exile  and  death,  i. 
333. 

Antipater,  Herod's  father,  i.  4. 

Antipater,  son  of  Herod  and  Doris, 
i.  5,  73,  181. 

Antonia,  used  as  Pretorium  by 
Pilate,  ii.  294. 

Apostles,  their  calling,  i.  247 ; 
their  character,  i.  248  ;  their 
Mission,  i.  325  ;  their  desertion 
at  Gethsemani,  ii.  269  ;  their 
discouragement  after  the  Sav- 
iour's death,  ii.  350,  359  ;  Jesus 
appears  to  His  Apostles,  ii.  363, 
367,  373,  375. 

Archelaus,  son  of  Herod,  i.  101, 
182. 

Arimathea,  native  place  of  Joseph, 
ii.  344. 

Aristobulus,  brother  of  Hyrcanus, 
i.  4. 

Arrest  of  Jesus,  ii.  266. 

Ascension  of  the  Saviour,  ii.  377. 

Ass.  The  ass  and  the  ox  in  the 
cave  at  the  Nativity,  i.  47  ;  the 
ass  of  Bethphage,  ii.  166. 

Augustus  promulgates  decree  foi 
the  Census,  i.  41. 

Avarice  of  the  Pharisees,  ii.  115  ; 
of  Judas,  ii.  159. 

Banias,    tents   on    its   housetops, 

ii.  42. 
Banquet  given  by  Levi,  i.  314. 


406 


INDEX. 


Baptism  of  John,  i.  112  ;  baptism 

in  use  by  the  disciples  of  Jesus, 

i.  176. 
Bar-Joxa,  "Son  of  Jonas,"  i.  133  ; 

ii.  22. 
Barrabas   preferred  before  Jesus, 

ii.  305. 
Bartholomew,  the  same  disciple 

as  Nathanael,  i.  135,  250. 
Bar-Timeus,  blind  man  cored  at 

Jericho,  ii.  151. 
Baskets  carried  by  the  Apostles, 

i.  339;  ii.  15. 
Beatitudes   (.Mount  of),   i.   247; 

the  Eight  Beatitudes,  i.  263. 
Beelzebub,  Prince  of  the  Devils, 

i.  296. 
Bethany,  dwelling-place  of  Laza- 
rus, ii.  79,  157,  164,  171. 
Bethbara,     or     Bethany-beyond- 

Jordan,  i.  111. 
Bethesda,  i.  232  ;  its  location  and 

its  healing  powers,  i.  393. 
Bethlehem,  i.  15,  46,  65,  68,  71; 

ii.  53. 
Bethphage,  "The  House  of  Figs," 

ii.  165. 
BeTHSAIDA    (the    village    home    of 

Peter  and  Andrew),  i.  156,  217. 
Bethsaid a- Julias,  i.  336;  ii.  20. 
Betrothals  among  the  Jews,  i.  30, 

39. 
Blind  persons  cured:  a  blind  and 

dumb  man,  possessed  by  a  devil, 

i.   295  ;  the  blind  man  of  Beth- 

sai'd a- Julias,  ii.  20  ;  the  man  born 

blind,   ii.   63;  two  blind  men  of 

Perea,  ii.  83  ;  the  blind  men  at 

Jericho,  ii.  151. 
Boanerges  "son  of  the  Thunder," 

i.  254. 
Brothers  of  the  Lord,  i.  383. 

Cssarea-Philippi,  ii.  21. 

C.ksakka,  residence  of  the  Ro- 
man procurators,  i.  103  ;  ii. 
295. 

Ca'iphas  the  High-Priest,  i.  104  ; 
directing  the  counsels  of  the  San- 
hedrin,  ii.  128  ;  presiding  at  the 
trial  of  Jesus,  ii.  275. 

Caxa  of  Galilee,  i.  140,  205. 


Canticles  preserved  by  S.  Luke, 
i.  25,  38,  58. 

Capharnaum.  Jesus'  first  sojourn 
at  that  village,  i.  148  ;  its  loca- 
tion, i.  153  ;  doings  of  Jesus  at 
Capharnaum,  i.  211-217,  226, 
274,  295,  31  1.  314  :  Jesus  anally 
abandons  it,  ii.  71. 

CAVE  of  the  Nativity,  i-  47  ;  of  the 
Agony,  ii.  262. 

Census  taken  over  all  Judea,  i.  tl. 

Centurion  <<\'  Capharnaum,  i.  27  I  ; 
upon  Calvary,  ii.  341,  345. 

Ciianaanitisii  woman  obtains  her 
daughter's  cure,  ii.  9. 

CHAROSETH,  ii.  216. 

Childhood  of  Jesus,  i.  77. 

Children  playing  in  the  public 
squares,  i.  284  ;  held  up  as  our 
models,  ii.  35  ;  blessed  by  Jesus, 
ii.  143;  their  hymns  in  the 
Temple  in  honor  of  Jesus,  ii. 
174. 

Chorozain,  i.  153  ;  ii.  71. 

CHRIST.  Significance  of  this  name, 
i.  55. 

Chronology  of  the  Life  of  Jesus, 

i.  94  ;  of  the  Passion,  ii.  386. 

Church  founded  on  the  Rock  of 
Peter,  ii.  23. 

Circumcision  of  John  Baptist,  i. 
23 ;  of  Jesus,  i.  54.  Circum- 
cision permitted  on  Sabbath 
days,  ii.  48. 

Claudia  Procula,  Pilate's  wife, 
ii.  306. 

Cleofas,  one  of  the  disciples  at 
Emmaiis,  ii.  360. 

Cleophas,  same  name  as  Alpheus, 
i.  87,  385  ;  ii.  333. 

Cock-crow,  ii.  283. 

Cockle  (Parable  of  the),  i.  304. 

Commandment.  The  greatest  of 
the  Commandments,  ii.  193;  the 
New  Commandment,  ii.  233. 

Confession  of  sins  required  for 
John's  baptism,  i.  112  ;  the  Con- 
fession of  Peter,  ii.  22. 

COPONIUS,  first  Procurator  of  Judea, 
i.  102. 

Corban,  ii.  6. 

Council  (Mount  of  Evil),  ii.  129. 


INDEX. 


407 


Cross.  Various  shapes  of  crosses, 
ii.  319  ;  carrying  of  the  Cross,  ii. 
321  ;  superscription  on  the  Cross, 
ii.  327  ;  Jesus  upon  the  Cross,  ii. 
329. 

Crown  of  Thorns,  ii.  310,  319. 

Crucifixion,  a  Roman  punish- 
ment, ii.  297  ;  preparations  for 
the  torture,  ii.  325  ;  its  execu- 
tion, ii.  328. 

Cup  of  the  Agony,  ii.  263  ;  cup 
offered  Jesus  by  the  soldiers,  ii. 
331. 

Dalmanutha,  ii.  16. 

Daniel,  Chief  of  the  Magi,  i.  63. 

Darkness  over  the  earth  at  the 
death  of  Jesus,  ii.  335,  338. 

David,  the  forefather  of  Mary,  i. 
28  ;  the  Christ  the  Son  of  David, 
ii.  195. 

Debtors.  Parable  of  the  two 
debtors,  i.  287. 

Decapolis,  ii.  12. 

Dedication  (Anniversary  of  the), 
ii.  101. 

Denarius  of  Caesar,  ii.  188. 

Denial.  Peter's  denial  of  his  Mas- 
ter, ii,  281. 

Desposynes,  their  testimony,  i. 
376. 

Didrachma,  ii.  34. 

Disciples.  Calling  of  the  first 
disciples,  i.  132  ;  the  three  dis- 
ciples called  by  Jesus,  ii.  45  ; 
the  Seventy-two  disciples,  ii.  72  ; 
the  five  hundred  disciples,  wit- 
nesses of  the  Resurrection,  ii.  373. 

Divorce.  Laxity  in  the  Jews'  con- 
duct concerning  divorce,  ii.  139  ; 
doctrine  of  Jesus,  ii.  140. 

Doctors.  Jesus  in  the  midst  of 
the  doctors,  i.  81. 

Doves,  i.  165,  326;  ii.  172. 

Drachma,  Parable  of  the  lost 
drachma,  ii.  112. 

Draught.  Miraculous  draughts 
of  fishes,  i.  217  ;  ii.  368. 

Drink  offered  Jesus  during  the 
Crucifixion,  ii.  331. 

Dropsy.  Man  with  dropsy  healed 
by  Jesus,  ii.  105. 


Eagles  of  Rome  introduced  into 
Jerusalem,  i.  103  ;  "  "Where  the 
body  is,  there  are  the  eagles, 
etc.,"  ii.  136. 

Ears  of  wheat  plucked  on  the 
Sabbath,  i.  238. 

Earthquake  at  the  death  of  Jesus, 
ii.  341. 

Education  among  the  Jews,  i.  81, 
86. 

Egypt  (flight  into),  i.  68  ;  the  re- 
turn, i.  74. 

Elect.  Their  small  number,  ii.  99, 
147. 

Elias,  forerunner  of  the  last  Ad- 
vent, i.  20  ;  his  portrayal  in 
Ecclesiasticus,  i.  109  ;  his  ap- 
pearance on  Mount  Tabor,  ii.  28. 

Elizabeth.  Her  conception,  i.  23  ; 
her  visitation  by  Mary,  i.  36. 

Engeddi,  i.  12. 

Emmaus.  Location  of  that  village, 
ii.  359  ;  the  disciples  of  Emmaus, 
ii.  359. 

En-Gannim,  i.  82  ;  ii.  44. 

Ephrem,  ii.  129. 

Esdralon,  i.  79,  140. 

Essenes,  i.  12. 

Ethnarch.  Title  given  to  Arche- 
laus,  i.  101. 

Eucharist  promised,  i.  344;  in- 
stituted, ii.  227. 

Excommunication  from  the  Syna- 
gogue, ii.  67. 

Exorcisms  used  by  Jews,  i.  199, 
296. 

Exterior  of  Jesus,  i.  197. 

Faith,  its  power,  ii.  31,180;  happi- 
ness of  those  who  believe  without 
seeing,  ii.  365. 

Fasting,  i.  269,  316;  the  Fast  of 
Jesus  in  the  desert,  i.  123. 

Festival  of  the  Jews  mentioned  in 
fifth  chapter  of  S.  John,  i.  389. 

Fever  of  Simon  Peter's  mother-in- 
law,  i.  214. 

Figs  (various  sorts  of),  ii.  171. 

Fig-tree.  Jews'  custom  of  pray- 
ing under  this  tree,  i.  135  ;  fig- 
tree  blasted  and  withered  away, 
ii.  171,  179. 


408 


INDEX. 


Fire.     Baptism   of   fire,   i.    116 ; 

lire  kindled  on  earth  by  Jesus, 

ii.  94. 
Fishers  of  men,  i.  215. 
Fish  multiplied  by  Jesus,  i.  339  ; 

ii.  15  ;   the  fish  a  svmbol  for  the 

Holy  Name,  i.  310. 
Flight  into  Egypt,  i.  08. 
Friend  of  the  Bridegroom,  i.  179. 

Parable  of  the  importunate  friend, 

ii.  83. 
Funerals  among  the  Jews,  i.  279, 

320  ;  ii.  123. 

Gabbatha,  ii.  295,  301. 

Gabriel  sent  to  Zachary,  i.  20  ;  to 
Mary,  i.  30. 

Gadara  (Um  Kreis),  i.  313. 

Galilee.  Description  of  it  as 
province,  i.  80  ;  Sea  of  Galilee, 
i.  148  ;  Ministry  of  Jesus  in  that 
region,  i.  208,  246  ;  He  aban- 
dons it,  ii.  8,  72,  138  ;  Ee  appears 
there  after  His  Resurrection,  ii. 
372. 

GALILEANS  massacred  in  the  Tem- 
ple, ii.  96;  their  peculiar  dialect, 
ii.  284. 

Gamaliel,  i.  57 ;  ii.  275. 

Garizim,  i.  82,  192,  388. 

Garments  of  Jesus,  i.  197;  ii.  328. 

Gaulaniti.s,  i.  100. 

Gehenna,  i.  265  ;  ii.  92,  289. 

Genealogies  of  the  Jews,  i.  44  ; 
of  the  Gospel,  i.  44,  373. 

Genesareth.  The  plain,  i.  151  ; 
the  Lake,  i.  148. 

Gentiles  (Porches of  the),  i.  367  ; 
Conversion  of  the  Gentiles,  i.  197, 
277  ;  ii.  109,  177,  376. 

Gergesa  (Kcrzrt),  i.  310. 

Gethsemani,  "The  Olive  Press," 
ii.  300. 

Golgotha,  ii.  317. 

GREEKS  ask  to  be  shown  the  Sav- 
iour, ii.  173. 

Hallel,  ii.  216,  242. 

Harmony  of  incidents  during  the 
third  year  of  Jesus'  Ministry,  ii. 
383  ;  harmony  of  the  narratives 
of  the  Resurrection,  ii.  394. 


Hen  gathering  chickens  under  her 
wings,  ii.  101,  199. 

Herod  Antipas,  i.  100,  181,  330; 
ii.  301. 

Herod  the  Great;  his  elevation 
to  the  throne,  i.  4 ;  his  reign,  i. 
17,  43  ;  his  fears  upon  the  arrival 
of  the  Magi,  i.  til  ;  his  cruelties, 
i.  72  ;  his  death,  i.  73. 

Herodias,  Philip's  wife,  abandons 
him  to  ally  herself  with  Antipas, 
i.  181  ;  she  persecutes  John  Bap- 
tist., i.  185  ;  ami  causes  his  death, 
i.  331. 

HlLLEL,  i.  11,  57,  84;  ii.  139,  275. 

Holy  Spirit  descends  upon  Jesus 
at  His  baptism,  i.  US  ;  blas- 
phemy against  the  Holy  Ghost, 
i.  298  ;  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
promised  to  the  Apostles,  ii.  240, 
247. 

Hucksters  driven  from  the  Tem- 
ple, i.  164;  ii.  172. 

Husbandmen  (Parable  of  the),  ii. 
183. 

Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus,  i.  3. 

Hyssop,  ii.  338. 

Idumea   evangelized    by   Jesus,    i. 

176. 
Illuminations  at  the  Feast  of  the 

Tabernacles,  ii.  59. 
Incarnation,  i.  32. 
INCENSE.     The   "Sacrifice  of  Per- 
fumes"   offered    in    the   Temple, 

i.  19. 
Innocents.     Massacre  of  the  SS. 

Innocents,  i.  71. 
Inscription  over  the  Cross,  ii.  325. 
ISKARIOTH,    "the  man  from   Keri- 

oth,"  i.  176,  257;  ii.  160. 
Issue.     Woman  with   an  issue  of 

blood  healed  bv  Jesus,  i.  318. 
ITUREA,  i.  97,  98,  101. 

Jacob's  ladder,  i.   138;     "Jacob's 

Well,"  i.  186. 
James,  son  of  Alpheus,  i.  88,  252; 

the  resurrected  Jesus  appears  to 

him,  ii.  374. 
James,  son  ofZebedee,  i.  210,  254, 

321  ;  ii.  28,  43,  149,  263. 


INDEX. 


409 


Jericho,  ii.  152. 

Jerusalem.  Description  of  the 
Holy  City,  i.  357  ;  Jesus  enters  it 
in  His  twelfth  year,  i.  81 ;  (luring 
the  first  Paseh  in  His  Ministry, 
i.  164;  during  the  second  Pasch, 
i.  231 ;  during  the  Feast  of  the 
Tabernacles,  ii.  42,  46;  during 
the  Anniversary  of  the  Dedica- 
tion, ii.  101  ;  last  journey  thith- 
er, ii.  130;  triumphant  entry  into 
the  town,  ii.  164.  Jesus  weeps 
over  it,' ii.  100,  168,  198. 

jEStrs,  the  Holy  Name,  i.  55;  His 
Birth  at  Bethlehem,  i.  47;  child- 
hood of  Jesus,  i.  77  ;  intellectual 
development,  i.  78  ;  Jesus  among 
the  doctors,  i.  83  ;  His  Youth, 
i.  86  ;  interior  of  the  home  at 
Nazareth,  i.  S7  ;  His  Baptism,  i. 
117;  the  Temptation,  i.  120; 
Jesus  at  the  marriage  in  Cana,  i. 
140  ;  first  Passover  in  His  Min- 
istry, i.  164  ;  Ministry  in  Judea, 
i.  175  ;  Jesus  and  the  Samaritan 
woman,  i.  188  ;  exterior  of  Je- 
sus, i.  197  ;  Ministry  in  Galilee, 
i.  209  ;  second  Passover  in  His 
Ministry,  i.  231  ;  Sermon  on  the 
Mount/  i.  259;  at  the  third 
Pasch  in  His  Ministry  Jesus 
promises  the  Bread  of  Life,  i. 
344  ;  Jesus  at  Tyre,  Sidon,  and 
the  Decapolis,  ii.  3  ;  the  Trans- 
figuration, ii.  27  ;  Jesus  at  the 
Feast  of  the  Tabernacles,  ii.  41  ; 
Jesus  quits  Galilee,  ii.  74  ;  first 
sojourn  in  Perea,  ii.  81  ;  He  at- 
tends the  Feast  of  the  Dedica- 
tion, ii.  101  ;  second  sojourn  in 
Perea,  ii.  105  ;  raising  of  Laza- 
rus, ii.  121  ;  last  journey  to  Je- 
rusalem, ii.  131  ;  solemn  entry 
into  the  city,  ii.  163  ;  the  last 
days  of  His  Ministry,  ii.  179  ; 
the  Last  Supper,  ii.  219  ;  the 
Agony  of  Jesus,  ii.  263 ;  His 
trial,  ii.  271  ;  His  death,  ii.  340  ; 
the  Resurrection,  ii.  352 ;  the 
Ascension,  ii.  378. 

Joachim  and  Anne,  parents  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  i.  29. 


Joanna,  wife  of  Chusa,  i.  294  ;  ii. 
357. 

John  Baptist  :  his  birth,  i.  23  ; 
his  life  in  the  desert,  i.  27,  108  ; 
baptizes  in  the  Jordan,  i.  Ill  ; 
at  (Enon,  i.  177  ;  his  preaching, 
i.  112  ;  he  proclaims  Jesus  the 
Messiah,  i.  115,  130  ;  baptizes 
Him  in  the  Jordan,  i.  117  ;  his 
last  testimony,  i.  179  ;  thrown 
into  prison  by  Antipas,  i.  181  ; 
sends  his  disciples  to  the  Saviour, 
i.  280  ;  his  death,  i.  332. 

John  Evangelist  :  his  calling,  i. 
132,  210  ;  his  character,  i.  254  ; 
various  acts  during  the  Ministry 
of  Jesus,  i.  321  ;  ii.  28,  43,  149; 
rests  his  head  on  the  Lord's 
breast  at  the  Last  Supper,  ii.  231 ; 
enters  Caiphas'  Palace,  bringing 
Peter  with  him,  ii.  2S0  ;  at  the 
foot  of  the  Gross,  ii.  333  ;  runs 
with  Peter  to  the  Sepulchre,  ii. 
353  ;  his  death  foretold  by  Jesus, 
ii.  371. 

Jonas  (The  Sign  of),  ii.  18,  87. 

Jordan,  i.  110. 

Joseph,  his  station  in  life,  i.  29  ; 
age  and  relationship  to  Mary,  i. 
45  ;  suspicions  aroused  against 
Mary,  i.  39  ;  their  marriage,  i. 
40  ;  takes  her  with  him  to  Beth- 
lehem, i.  46  ;  thence  to  Egypt,  i. 
68  ;  return  to  Nazareth,  i.  75  ; 
his  death,  i.  87. 

Joseph,  cousin  of  Jesus,  i.  87  ;  ii. 
349. 

Joseph  of  Arimathea,  ii.  345. 

Joses,  cousin  of  Jesus,  i.  88  ;  ii.  348. 

Judas  Iskarioth,  his  character, 
i.  257  ;  dissatisfaction  in  the 
Synagogue  at  Capharnaum,  i. 
353  ;  at  the  banquet  of  Simon 
the  Leper,  ii.  158  ;  he  betrays 
Jesus  to  the  Sanhedrin  faction, 
ii.  212  ;  his  treason  denounced  at 
the  Last  Supper,  ii.  226,  231 ;  he 
leads  the  armed  band  to  Geth- 
semani,  ii.  265  ;  his  death,  ii. 
288. 

Jude,  Thaddeus,  or  Lebbeus,  i.  88, 
252;  ii.  235. 


410 


INDEX. 


Ji'DF.A    (Description    of),    i.    79; 

I  tesert  of  Judea,  i.  106. 
JUDGE  (Parable  of  the  unjust),  ii. 

136. 
Judgment  (The  last),  ii.  1  i» 7 - 

BJEDRON,  i.  357  ;  ii.  102,  252,  261, 

270. 
Kkimias,  i.  133. 
Kepler,  his  theory  concerning  the 

Star  of  the  Magi,  i.  382. 
KERIOTH,  native  place   of  Judas,  i. 
^  176. 
Khans,  or  Caravansary,  i.  -17;  Khan 

Minieh,  i.  155. 
Koi  i:n   Hattin,  or  Mount  of  the 

Beatitudes,  i.  247. 

Lamb  of  God,  i.  131 ;   the  Paschal 

Lamb,  ii.  169,  215. 
Lamp  set  iu    its   socket,    i.    261  ; 

lamps   of   the    Ten  Virgins,   ii. 

197. 
Last  Supper  (The),  ii.  214. 
Law  read  in  the  Synagogue,  i.  201  ; 

not   destroyed    but    fulfilled    by 

Jesus,  i.  264  ;   the  Pharisees  and 

the  Law,  i.  267. 
Lazarus,  the  friend  of  Jesus,  ii. 

79 ;    raised    from    the    dead,   ii. 

121. 
Lazarus  and  the  wicked  rich  man, 

ii.  118. 
Leaven  (Parable  of  the),  i.   305; 

the  leaven   of  the  Pharisees,  ii. 

19. 
Lebbeus  or  Thaddeus,  a  surname 

of  the  Apostle  Jude,  i.  88. 
LEPERS,  their  sad  condition,  i.  220  ; 

ceremony  for  their  purification, 

i.    221 ;  the  leper   of   Galilee,  i. 

220  ;  the  ten  lepers,  ii.  132. 
LEVI,    the   publican,    i.    225  ;    his 

banquet,  i.  313. 
Lilies  of  the  fields,  i.  270  ;  ii.  93. 
Locusts,  the  nourishment  of  John 

Baptist,  i.  108. 
Logos,  i.  362. 
Luke,    his   Prologue,   i.    p.    xviii, 

preface;   the   first   two   chapters 

of  his  Gospel,  i.  53. 
Lunatic  healed  by  Jesus,  ii.  30. 


Macheronte,  John  Baptist's  pris- 
on, i.  183,  331. 

Macro  BIU8,  anecdote  from  his 
Saturnalia,  i.  73. 

Magdala  (MejcL  I),  i.  151,  153,  290. 

Magi,  their  country,  their  func- 
tions, and  their  religion,  i.  61  ; 
the  Star  which  guided  them  to 
Jerusalem,  i.  63,  382  ;  they  wor- 
ship Jesus,  i.  67. 

Malachy  prophesies  the  Forerun- 
ner's coming,  i.  16,  21  ;  ii.  30. 

Malchus  healed  by  Jesus,  ii.  269. 

Malediction  of  the  Cities  of  the 
Lake,  ii.  74  ;  of  the  Pharisees 
and  Scribes,  ii.  89,  196. 

Mammon,  i.  269  ;  ii.  116. 

Manna,  a  figure  of  the  Eucharist, 
i.  346. 

Mark  (the  character  of  his  Gospel), 
i.  preface,  xviii. 

Marriage  restored  to  its  primitive 
sanctity  by  Jesus,  ii.  ]40. 

Mariamne,  wife  of  Herod  the 
Great,  i.  4. 

Martha,  sister  of  Mary,  ii.  79,  121. 

Mart  greeted  by  the  Angel,  i.  30  ; 
visits  Elisabeth,  i.  35  ;  her  Mag- 
nificat, i.  37  ;  she  is  suspected 
by  Joseph,  i.  39  ;  her  marriage, 
i.  40  ;  bears  Jesus,  i.  50  ;  presents 
herself  in  the  Temple  for  the 
Purification,  i.  56  ;  Mary  and  the 
Child  Jesus,  i.  79  ;  the  finding 
of  Jesus  among  the  doctors,  i.  83  ; 
Mary's  household  at  Nazareth,  i. 
87  ;  Mary  at  the  wedding  festi- 
val in  ('ana,  i.  144  ;  at  the  foot 
of  the  Cross,  ii.  334. 

Mary  Magdalene  converted  at  the 
banquet  of  Simon  the  Pharisee, 
i.  285  ;  testimony  of  Tradition 
touching  the  Magdalene,  i.  289; 
the  latter  cannot  be  distinguished 
from  Mary  of  Bethany  and  Mary, 
sister  of  Lazarus,  i.  291  ;  she  fol- 
lows Jesus  with  the  holy  women, 
i.  294  ;  Mary  and  Martha  at 
Bethany,  ii.  79 ;  at  the  raising  of 
Lazarus,  ii.  121  ;  Mary  anoints 
the  Lord  at  the  banquet  of  Simon 
the  Leper,  ii.  159  ;   the  Magda- 


INDEX. 


411 


lene  at  the  foot  of  the  Cross,  ii. 
333 ;  at  the  Sepulchre,  ii.  351, 355. 

Matthew,  his  calling,  i.  225 ;  his 
character,  i.  251;  the  dinner  given 
in  honor  of  Jesus,  i.  313  ;  his 
Gospel,  i.  preface,  xviii. 

Messiah.  The  Jews'  mistaken  con 
ceptions  of  His  Mission,  i.  13  ; 
the  true  Messiah  foretold  in 
Scripture,  i    15. 

Metrix,  a  measure  used  by  Greeks 
and  Romans,  i.  145. 

Mina.  Parable  of  the  servants  and 
the  pounds,  ii.  156. 

Ministry  of  Jesus.  Epoch  and 
localities  in  which  Jesus  exercised 
His  ministry,  i.  93  ;  its  duration, 
i.  94  ;  Jesus'  ministry  in  Judea,  i. 
175  ;  in  Galilee,  i.  278  ;  in  Perea, 
ii.  81,  105  ;  last  days  of  Jesus' 
ministry  in  Jerusalem,  ii.  175. 

Miracles  of  Jesus,  their  character 
and  object,  i.  147  ;  water  changed 
to  wine,  i.  146 ;  healing  of  the 
son  of  Herod's  officer,  i.  205  ;  of 
a  possessed  man  in  the  synagogue 
at  Capharnaum,  i.  212  ;  of  Si- 
mon's mother-in-law,  i.  214  ;  the 
miraculous  draught  of  fishes,  i. 
217  ;  healing  of  a  leper,  i.  220  ; 
of  a  paralytic  at  Capharnaum,  i. 
222  ;  of  another  at  Bethesda,  i. 
232  ;  of  a  man  with  a  withered 
hand,  i.  242  ;  of  the  Centurion's 
servant,  i.  274  ;  raising  of  the 
widow's  son  at  Nairn,  i.  278  ;  de- 
liverance of  a  possessed  man  who 
was  dumb  and  blind,  i.  295  ;  the 
storm  on  the  lake  calmed,  i.  308; 
deliverance  of  the  possessed  men 
of  Gergesa,  i.  310  ;  healing  a 
woman  with  an  issue  of  blood,  i. 
318;  raising  of  Jai'rus'  daughter, 
i.  320  ;  first  multiplication  of 
the  loaves,  i.  339  ;  Jesus  walks 
upon  the  waters,  i.  342  ;  heal- 
ing of  the  Chanaanitish  woman's 
daughter,  ii.  9  ;  of  a  deaf  and 
dumb  man,  ii.  12  ;  second  mul- 
tiplication of  the  loaves,  ii.  14  ; 
healing  of  a  blind  man  at  Beth- 
saida,  ii.  20 ;  of  a  possessed  child, 


ii.  31  ;  the  stater  found  in  a  fish's 
mouth,  ii.  35  ;  healing  of  the 
man  born  blind,  ii.  63  ;  of  two 
blind  men,  ii.  83  ;  of  a  dumb  de- 
monished  person,  ii.  84  ;  of  a 
woman  bent  over,  ii.  98  ;  of  a 
dropsical  man,  ii.  106  ;  raising 
of  Lazarus,  ii.  121 ;  healing  of 
ten  lepers,  ii.  132  ;  of  the  blind 
men  at  Jericho,  ii.  151  ;  the  tig- 
tree  blasted,  ii.  171  ;  the  guards 
overthrown  and  Malchus  healed  at 
Gethsemani,  ii.  265,  267  ;  second 
miraculous  draught  of  fishes,  ii. 
368. 

MoNTHS'of  the  Jewish  year,  ii.  386. 

Mm  i.\.  Care  taken  to  ascertain  the 
first  appearance  of  the  new  moon, 
ii.  392. 

Moses.  The  Mosaic,  and  the  New 
Law,  i.  264  ;  appearance  of  Moses 
during  the  Transfiguration,  ii.  28; 
Pharisees  seated  in  Moses'  chair, 
ii.  196. 

Mount  of  the  Quarantine,  i.  120  ;  of 
the  Temptation,  i.  127  ;  of  the  Be- 
atitudes, i.  247  ;  of  the  Transfig- 
uration, ii.  27  ;  of  Olives,  ii.  253. 

Multiplication  of  the  loaves,  i. 
339  ;  ii.  14. 

Mustard  (Parable  of  the  grain  of), 

•  i.  305. 

Myrrh,  ii.  346. 

Nai.u,  i.  278,  285. 

Naplouse,  the  ancient  Sichem,  i. 
188. 

Nathanael,  son  of  Tolmai  (Bar- 
tholomew), i.  135. 

Nativity  of  Jesus  Christ,  i.  46. 

Nazarene.  Significance  of  this 
name  as  applied  to  Jesus,  i.  75. 

Nazareth  (description  of),  i.  79  ; 
hidden  life  of  Jesus  at  Nazareth, 
i.  86  ;  He  is  driven  thence,  i.  204 ; 
and  visits  it  for  the  last  time,  i. 
323. 

Nicodemus  visits  Jesus  at  night,  i. 
169  ;  timidly  undertakes  his  de- 
fence before  the  Sanhedrin,  ii. 
54  ;  entombs  Him  sumptuously, 
ii.  347. 


412 


INDEX. 


GEnon,  nearSalim,  i.  Ill,  177. 
Offices  of  Herod's  court,  whose 

son  Jesus  healed,  i.  205. 
Olives  (Mount  of),  ii.  253. 
Ophel,  i.  357;  ii.  243,  271. 

Parables.  A  new  form  of  teaching 
for  the  Saviour,  i.  300;  parables 
of  the  Kingdom  of  <!od,  i.  3(>1- 
313;  of  a  king  demanding  a  reck- 
oning from  his  servants,  ii.  38  ; 
of  the  Good  Shepherd,  ii.  69  ;  of 
the  Good  Samaritan,  ii.  78  ;  of  the 
foolish  rich  man,  ii.  93  ;  of  the 
sterile  tig-tree,  ii.  97;  of  the  guests 
invited  to  a  banquet,  ii.  107;  of  the 
lost  sheep  and  the  lost  drachma, 
ii.  Ill  ;  of  the  prodigal  son,  ii. 
112;  of  the  unfaithful  steward, 
ii.  115  ;  of  the  wicked  rich  man, 
ii.  118;  of  the  judge  and  the 
widow,  ii.  136  ;  of  the  Pharisee 
and  the  publican,  ii.  137  ;  of  the 
workmen  in  the  vineyard,  ii.  147  ; 
of  the  servants  and  the  mina,  ii. 
146  ;  of  the  two  sons,  ii.  181  ;  of 
the  master  and  the  vine,  ii.  182  ; 
of  the  wedding  festival,  it.  185  ; 
of  the  ten  virgins,  ii.  210  ;  of  the 
servants  and  the  talents,  ii.  211  ; 
of  the  true  Vine,  ii.  244. 

Paralytic  of  Capharnaum,  i.  222  ; 
of  Bethesda  Pool,  i.  232. 

Pascii  (or  Passover).  Four  Pass- 
overs in  the  public  life  of  the 
Saviour,  i.  96,  391. 

Pearl  of  great  price,  i.  307  ;  pearls 
thrown  before  swine,  i.  271. 

PEREA,  i.  97  ;  ii-  75  ;  ministry  of 
Jesus  in  that  country,  ii.  81-120. 

PERSIANS  (religion  of  the),  i.  62. 

Peter,  his  calling,  i.  133  ;  his  char- 
acter, i.  256  ;  witnesses  the  rais- 
ing of  Jairus'  daughter,  i.  321  ; 
his  temerity  on  the  lake,  i.  342  ; 
he  confesses  the  Divinity  of  the 
Christ  at  Capharnaum,  i.  352  ; 
at  Bethsaida- Julias,  ii.  22  ;  the 
Primacy  of  Peter,  ii.  23 ;  wit- 
nesses the  Transfiguration,  ii.  28  ; 
pays  the  tribute  for  Jesus,  ii.  33  ; 
questions  him  as   to   forgiveness 


of  injuries,  ii.  38 ;  withstands 
Jesus,  about  to  wash  his  feet,  ii. 
•l-l-\ ;  his  fall  foretold,  ii.  2oi,  235, 
251  ;  strikes  off  M airbus'  ear,  ii. 
269  ;  the  threefold  denial,  ii.  281 ; 
Peter  runs  to  the  tomb,  ii.  353  ; 
the  risen  Jesus  appears  to  him,  ii. 
361;  Jesus  appoints  him  Shepherd 
of  His  sheep  and  lambs,  ii.  369. 

Pharisees,  origin  of  the  Sect,  i.  6  ; 
doctrines,  i.  7,  239  ;  ii.  4,  193  ; 
Jesus  is  persecuted  by  them,  i. 
186,  234,  239,  293,  314  ;  ii.  4, 
17,  31,  46,  84,  89,  106,  117,  188  ; 
Jesus  warns  his  disciples  against 
their  hypocrisy,  i.  267;  ii.  6,  19, 
91  ;  Jesus  condemns  them,  ii.  90, 
196  ;  the  Pharisee  and  the  publi- 
can, ii.  137. 

PHASAKL,  i.  4  ;  tower  of  that  name, 
i.  359. 

Philip,  the  Apostle,  his  calling,  i. 
134  ;  his  character,  i.  250  ;  his  de- 
mand at  the  Last  Supper,  ii.  239. 

Philit,  husband  of  1  lerodias,  i.  181. 

Philip,  tetrarch  of  Iturea,  i.  100. 

l'n  i  i.i  i,  his  doctrine  of  The  Word, 
i.  367. 

Phosnicea.  Jesus' sojourn  in  that 
country,  ii.  8,  11. 

Phylacteries,  i.  81 ;  ii.  194. 

Pilate,  his  violent  but  weak  na- 
ture, i.  102  ;  he  quest  ions  Jesus 
and  condemns  him  to  death,  ii 
294-309. 

Pilgrimage  to  the  Jordan,  i.  118. 

Pinnacle  of  the  Temple,  i.  125. 

Porches  of  the  Temple,  i.  360. 

Possessed  person  at  Capharnaum, 
i.  212  ;  one  blind  and  dumb,  i. 
295  ;  two  at  Gergesa,  i.  312  ;  the 
Chanaanite's  daughter,  ii.  9  ;  the 
demonished  child,  ii.  31  ;  a  man 
possessed  by  a  dumb  devil,  ii.  84. 

Potter's  Field,  ii.  292. 

Povi.ktv  praised  by  Jesus,  i.  263  ; 
ii.  1,  17. 

PRAYER  (The  Lord's),  i.  268;  ii. 
82  ;  Pharisaic  superstitions  con- 
cerning prayer,  i.  268  ;  Jesus' 
teaching  on  this  subject,  i.  268  ; 
ii.  82,  136  ;  prayer  of  Jesus  after 


INDEX. 


41; 


the  Last  Supper,  ii.  253  ;  at  Geth- 
semani,  ii.  255. 

Presentation  of  Jesus  in  the  Tem- 
ple, i.  55. 

Pretorium  (Pilate's),  ii.  294. 

Prodigal  (Parable  of  the),  ii.  113. 

Prodigies  which  accompanied  the 
death  of  Jesus,  ii.  341. 

Prophecies  made  by  Jesus  as  to 
his  Passion,  i.  173;  ii.  25,  33,  149, 
177,  251  ;  of  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem,  ii.  100,  167,  198  ;  of 
the  end  of  the  world,  ii.  210. 

Prophets  (False),  i.  272  ;  ii.  204. 

Publicans  receive  John's  baptism, 
i.  115  ;  they  are  despised  by  the 
Jews,  i.  226  ;  ii.  152. 

Purification  of  Mary,  i.  56. 

Purim  (Feast  of  the),  i.  389. 

Quirinius  (Census  of),  i.  43. 

Raca,  "  empty  headed,"  i.  265. 
Rachel  (Tomb  of),  i.  71. 
Redeeming  the  first-born  of  Israel, 

i.  55. 
Reed  of  the  Passion,  ii.  270. 
Resurrection  of  Jesus,  ii.  352. 
Riches.   Lazarus  and  the  rich  man, 

ii.  118  ;  the  foolish  ricli  man,  ii. 

93  ;   riches  condemned  by  Jesus, 

i.  264  ;  ii.  117,  135. 
Ritual  of  the  Passover,  ii.  214. 
Robe  (Wedding),  ii.  186;  in  which 

Jesus  was  clothed  by  Herod,  ii. 

298. 

Sabbath.  Jesus  accused  of  break- 
ing the  Sabbath,  i.  239;  Phari- 
saic superstitions  touching  the 
Sabbath,  i.  233,  237  ;  ii.  106. 

Sadducees.  Origin  of  this  sect,  i. 
8 ;  their  doctrines,  i.  10  ;  they 
conspire  with  the  Pharisees  to 
destroy  Jesus,  ii.  190. 

Salome,  mother  of  James  and  John, 
i.  254  ;  her  request  for  her  sons, 
ii.  149  ;  her  presence  at  the  Tomb 
of  Jesus,  ii.  343,  351. 

Salt  without  savor,  i.  261  ;  Dis- 
ciples seasoned  with  fire  and  salt, 
ii.  37. 


Salutations  in  the  East,  i.  326  ; 
ii.  73. 

Samaritans.  A  native  woman  con- 
verted by  Jesus,  i.  188  ;  origin  of 
the  race,  i.  386  ;  their  beliefs,  i. 
388  ;  hatred  of  the  Jews,  i.  387  ; 
warm  welcome  given  Jesus,  i.  195. 

Sanhedrin,  its  constitution,  i.  5  ; 
its  importance  in  the  government 
of  Judea,  i.  104  ;  a  deputation 
sent  to  John,  i.  130  ;  joins  issue 
against  Jesus,  i.  235  ;  dogs  His 
path  with  spies,  i.  238  ;  Sanhe- 
(Irin-Council  after  the  raising  of 
Lazarus,  ii.  127  ;  agreement  with 
Judas  Iskarioth,  ii.  213  ;  judges 
and  condemns  Jesus,  ii.  279,  287. 

Sarepta,  ii.  9. 

Satan  tempts  Jesus,  i.  123  ;  sig- 
nificance of  the  title,  ii.  25  ; 
Satan  master  of  Judas,  ii.  213, 
232. 

Scourging  of  Jesus,  ii. 

Scribes,  i.  6,  10,  273  ;  ii.  31,  90. 

Sea  of  Galilee,  i.  148  ;  Dead  Sea, 
i.  107,  149. 

Sepulture  of  Jesus,  ii.  367. 

Sermon  on  the  Mount,  i.  259. 

Serpent  of  brass,  i.  173;  prudent 
as  serpents,  ii.  330. 

Servant  (the  watchful),  ii.  99 ; 
duties  of  a  servant,  ii.  120. 

Shammai,  the  Scribe,  Hillel's  rival, 
i.  84,  237  ;  ii.  139. 

Sheep  (the  lost),  ii.  111. 

Shekel,  i.  55  ;  ii.  212. 

Shepherd  (The  Good),  ii.  69,  111. 

Sichem,  i.  46,  82,  186. 

Sidon,  i.  158,  246  ;  ii.  8,  11,  74. 

Siloe  (Fountain  of),  i.  394  ;  ii.  51, 
65  ;  Tower  of  Siloe,  ii.  97. 

Simeon  blesses  Jesus  in  the  Temple, 
i.  57. 

Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  i.  133,  210, 
256  ;  ii.  22,  235,  369. 

Simon,  the  Canaanean,  i.  251. 

Simon,  the  Cyrenean,  ii.  321. 

Simon,  the  Leper,  entertains  Jesus 
at  Bethany,  ii.  285. 

Simon,  the  Pharisee,  l.  285. 

Soldiers  crucify  Jesus,  ii.  325;  cast 
lots  for  His  tunic,   ii.  328  ;   in- 


414 


INDEX. 


suit  Him,  ii.  331  ;  but  recognize 
the  Divinity  of  Jesus  at  His  death, 

ii.  34-2. 
Son  of  God,  i.  137. 
Son  of  Man,  i.  138. 
Spikenard  poured  upon  Jesus,  ii. 

ICO. 
Star  of  the  Magi,  i.  63,  382. 
STEWARD  (The  unfaithful),  ii.  115. 
Supper-Room,   ii.   220,  243,   361, 

375. 
Sweat  of  blood  during  the  Agony  of 

Jesus,  ii.  263. 
Swine  precipitated  into  Lake  Gen- 

esareth,  i.  312. 
Sword  cast  upon  earth  by  Jesus,  ii. 

95  ;  the  two  swords  in  the  Sup- 
per-Room, ii.  235. 
Sycamore,  ii.  151. 
Synagogue  audits  services,  i.  200  ; 

one   built   by   the   Centurion    of 

Capharnaum,  i.  275. 

Table  (first  seats  at  the),  ii.  106. 
Tabernacles  (Feast  of  the),  ii.  41. 
Tabor,  ii.  28, 

Tempest  calmed,  i.  309,  342. 
Temple,  description  of  it,  i.  359  ; 

it  is  twice   purified  by  Jesus,  i. 

164 ;  ii.  172  ;   Jesus  foretells  the 

fall  of  the  Temple,  ii.  201. 
Temptation  of  Jesus,  i.  120. 
Thaddeus,  surname  of  the  Apostle 

Jude,  i.  88. 
Thieves   crucified   with  Jesus,   ii. 

326  ;  the  good  thief,  ii.  332. 
Thomas,  the  Apostle  ;  his  charac- 
ter, i.  251  ;  generous  nature,   ii. 

124  ;  incredulity,  ii.  365. 
Thorns  (the  crown  of),  ii. 
THRESHiNG-FLOORsin  Judea,  i.  116. 
Tiberias,  i.  151. 
Tithes,  paid  by  the  Pharisees,  ii. 

90,  198. 
Tomb    of   Lazarus,    ii.    122,    124  ; 

Tomb  of  Jesus,  ii.  347. 
Tower    of  the   Flocks,   i.    51  ;   of 

M.jdl,  i.  153  ;  of  Siloe,  ii.  153; 

built  in  the  vineyard,  ii.  182. 
Trachonitis,  i.  100. 


Transfiguration  of  Jesus,  ii.  27. 
Treasure   (hidden),    i.   807  ;    tlie 

Treasury  of  the  Temple,  ii.  59,200. 
Tunic,   without   Beams,    worn    by 

Jesus,  i.  198  ;  ii.  829. 
Tyke,  i.  162,  2  Hi  ;  ii.  8,  12,  30. 
Tyropozon,  i.  3.") 7. 

Urim  and  Thummim,  ii.  128. 

Via  Dolorosa,  ii.  316. 

Vine  (The)  and  the   Branches,  ii. 

244. 
Vinegar  offered  to  Jesus,  ii.  339. 
Virginity  praised  by  the  Saviour, 

ii.  142. 
Voice  from  Heaven  at  the  Baptism 

of  Jesus,  i.  118  ;  upon  Tabor,  ii. 

29  ;  in  the  Temple,  ii.  174. 

Water  changed  to  wine,  i.  146;   a 

stream   springing   up  to  Eternal 

Life,  i.  191 ;   water  of  Siloe,  ii.  51. 
Washing  of  the  feet  at  the  Last 

Supper,  ii.  223. 
Wedding   ceremonies    among    the 

Jews,  i.   141  ;    at  Cana,  i.   143  ; 

of  the  king's  son,  ii.  185. 
Widow  and  the  unjust  judge,  ii. 

136;  the  widow's  mite,  ii.  200. 
Woman,   The    holy   women    leave 

Galilee  to  follow  Jesus,   i.   •J'.'t  ; 

at  Calvary  and  at  the  Tomb,  ii. 

332,  343,  347,  357;  the  woman 

with  a  Spirit  of  infirmity,  ii.  98. 
Word,  S.  John's  doctrine  of  The 

Word,     i.    362  ;     the     Mazdean 

Word,  i.   364  ;    Philo's  Word,  i. 

367;  the  Word  of  the  Targums, 

i.  372. 

Youttah,  birth  place  of  John  Bap. 
tist,  i.  18. 

Zabulon,  i.  155,  208. 

Zachaby,  father  of  John  Baptist,  i. 

19-27. 
Zacheus,  the  publican,  ii.  152. 
Zebedee,  father  of  James  and  John, 

i.  210. 


ADDENDA. 

Vol.  I.  p.  144. 

2  S.  Gregory  of  Nyssa  (Fatrologie  grecque  f  xliv.  p.  1308)  ;  S.  Ber- 
nard (Patrologie  latine,  f  clxxxiii.  p.  160).  Ci'.  Maldonatus  :  Com- 
ment, in  Joan.,  Cap.  ii.  13. 

Vol.  II.  p.  354. 

4  John  xx.  11, 18.  Mark  xvi.  9.  —  "Quamquam  Dominus  primo  dica- 
tur  apparuisse  Magdalenae,  pietas  tamen  non  parum  suadet  ut  credamus 
Dominum  prius  apparuisse  dilectissimae  suae  matri,  licet  earn  praeter- 
miserint  Evaugelistae,  quod  ad  counrmandam  filii  resurrectionem  in- 
efficax  esset  matris  testimonium.  .  .  .  Quamquam  etiam  videri  possit 
Dominum  ideo  non  apparuisse  subito  matri  quod  illam  in  fide  resur- 
rectionis  sciret  non  vacillare,  propter  quod  non  ita  cum  reliquis  sepul- 
crum  adiit,  sicut  cum  reliquis  astitit  cruci."  Jansenius  Gaudentius 
(Comment,  in  Concord.  Ecattg.     Cap.  cxlv.  p.  1045). 


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